Horse rescued from drowning in pond

A five-year-old piebald gelding was winched out of sinking mud by Derbyshire firefighters last Tuesday (2 September).

The horse’s owner — trainee veterinary nurse Becky Barwick — first realised he had escaped from the farm at 8am.

After escaping from his paddock, Kyrone was soon found 100m away submerged in a pond with a silted bottom (pictured right).

“His head was out, but he was starting to blow bubbles. We managed to get a head collar on him and keep his head up till the fire brigade arrived,” Becky said.

Firefighters from the Derbyshire Fire and Rescue team took more than two and a half hours to free the horse from the sinking mud.

Crews from the animal rescue team from Matlock station helped save the trapped horse, while water rescue appliances came from the nearby Chapel-en-le-Firth firestation.

“Working alongside the local vet, our specialist animal rescue team was able to secure lines and strops to a sedated Kyrone, enabling him to be attached to the lifting arm of the device and be raised to safety,” said station manager Paul Hawker.

The horse was completely covered in mud but once he came round (pictured above and right

heavily sedated) he was eating well. He has since being turned out in a different field with better fencing.

“Animal and land owners can assist in preventing these type of incidents occurring by regularly checking the security of gates and fences in which livestock are kept,” cautioned Mr Hawker.

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