Dramatic scenes unfolded at an Eagleby property on 7 October after Mickey, a stallion, became stuck in mud at his owner’s property.
Queensland Fire Department called upon their colleagues at the Greenbank Rural Fire Brigade to help rescue Mickey.
First Officer of the Greenbank Rural Fire Brigade, Fabian Stangherlin, said both agencies used different techniques and equipment during the rescue to adapt to the wet and muddy conditions.
“Fire and Rescue tried to remove the stallion from the mud, but weren’t successful, so they called on us, and we came out with our special equipment,” Mr Stangherlin said.
“We ended up using our crane and our purpose-built truck that has a crane on it to lift the stallion out of the mud and put it back into the paddock.”
A veterinarian on scene assisted the horse during and after the rescue efforts. Mr Stangherlin said the horse was reportedly happy to be returned to its paddock.
Rescue events like this one are relatively common, Mr Stangherlin said. Since Mr Stangherlin began working at the Greenbank Rural Fire Brigade in 2017, the team has on average rescued a stuck or stranded horse once a month.
“Generally, we have a 99% success rate from when we get them out,” he said.
“We usually have a vet on scene, and we follow our protocols, and we usually get them out and hand them over to the vet who looks after them and get the horse up and walking around.”
