Island Life Magazine Ltd February/March 2008 | Page 78

life

EQUESTRIAN - Sponsored by Brickfields and Foghill Tack

Your horse is trapped
- what do you do?
Written by: The British Horse Society

A

s a horse owner I can think of
nothing worse than finding my
horse trapped in the stable or
field, or becoming involved in an accident
whilst travelling. How would I react?
Fire brigades across the country are
called to rescue horses on a regular basis
from all sorts of predicaments and I
recently spent two days in Hampshire
with Jim Green and Anton Phillips, of
the Hampshire Animal Rescue Team
who were running a course for fellow
fire fighters on how to carry out all
sorts of rescues involving animals. Jim
and Anton described various rescues
they have attended and how with the
correct (and not expensive) equipment,
some well thought out planning and
the right manpower most situations can
be dealt with safely and effectively.
However what surprised and shocked me
the most was the behaviour of some of
the horse owners they come into contact
with. They have encountered owners
shouting, screaming and swearing at them
to ‘do something’ to help their animal
immediately. Of course owners want their
animals rescued as soon as possible, and
so do the rescue team attending, but their
first priority must be their own personal
safety, the safety of fellow team members
and any other helpers at the scene. More
often than not they need to wait for a
vet to attend to sedate the horse so they
can work around it safely and sometimes
they need to bring in specialist equipment
to help clear the surrounding area and
perform the rescue. In the case of an
accident while travelling, the rescue team
will not release the horse from the trailer
or box until another transport vehicle has
arrived to take it away from the scene.

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So what should you do if you find
your horse in need of rescue? The first
thing is to remain calm and contact the
fire brigade and your vet (if you are
travelling and not near home then the
emergency services will contact a vet in
the local area). When the rescue team
arrive don’t expect them to swing into
action immediately, they need to assess
the situation and surroundings, decide the
best way to perform the rescue and wait
for the vet to arrive to sedate the horse if
necessary. If you
are calm then the
rescue team will
see you as an asset
and will allow you
to remain with
the horse to help
keep it calm, but
if you are agitated
and upset then
they may have to
ask you to leave
the scene as you
will have become a
hindrance to their
work and may be
stressing the horse
unnecessarily.
If the Island
Fire Service is
not partaking in
the Hampshire
training, I urge you
to get hold of your
Chief Fire Officer
and let them know
that training is
available. Offer
to fund raise if
needed. You never
know when you

might have to call for assistance – is your
fire service going to offer the help you
really need? Be prepared to find out now.
To join the BHS visit www.bhs.
org.uk or call 01926 707744

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