The keeper of a then 31-year-old horse who was stuck upside-down in a ditch for three hours as an animal rescue unit had to be sent from the next county said the incident highlights how crucial such services are.
Darren Woods, who has had Vicky Milton’s former eventer Rupert since he was a four-year-old, had nothing but praise for the rescuers, who freed him to make a full recovery. It was a Kent Fire and Rescue Service unit that came to his aid as the West Sussex Fire & Rescue one was unavailable.
Darren told H&H he was hacking out, before Christmas, on a younger horse, with another rider on Rupert.
“We were coming back and at a place where the water runs through a pipe,” he said. “The young horse spooked and took a step back, so Rupert stepped back too. He was right on the edge of the bank, it gave way and he sat down.
“The lad on him got off but Rupert couldn’t get up, and slid sideways into the ditch.”
Darren got off his horse but there was little they could do while trying to keep hold of the youngster and reassure Rupert. Darren flagged down some passers-by, who turned out to be friends and called the vet and 999.
“They said the Sussex rescue unit wasn’t available and they’d have to send one from Kent,” Darren said. “A farmer came with a tractor and straps he’d used to rescue cows with but the vet was reluctant to use them as horses are more delicate.”
The unit arrived after about two and a half hours, and Rupert was pulled to safety. Darren said that, having been stuck so long, he was stiff at first but suffered no lasting ill effects.
“The horse has a heart of steel,” he said. “And we were very lucky; it was mild and not wet. If it had been raining, he’d have been in deeper water, or if he’d been in the water and it was freezing – luckily everything was on our side that day, and the rescuers were amazing.”
This is not the first time Rupert has been in such a predicament; Darren said in the late 1990s, when they were based at Hickstead, Rupert fell into a river and was lifted out by the fire service. He also got caught in a fence as a four-year-old and severed an artery.
Rupert was rescued from a river once before, in 1999
“I wouldn’t have thought he’d have survived all this to get to 32 but what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” Darren said.
“I evented him after the previous incident and he always gave his heart. In his late teens, he retired from all that but has since been ridden by many people. At 18, I thought he was an old horse, now maybe I know he wasn’t! He’s just got so much determination and that’s what kept him alive [the day of the rescue].”
Darren wants to raise awareness of the importance of large-animal rescue units, as without them, stories like Rupert’s would not have happy endings.
“Everyone thinks it won’t happen to them until it does,” he said. “Rupert has done great things for many people, including me, when I didn’t have any money or horses. He really got me on the road and helped with my teaching and career and the number of others he’s helped; he’s taught people from scratch, a livery’s daughter who’d lost her pony had lessons on him when she was six, while the man who was loaning him was 80. He may not have been to an Olympics but he’s done so much for so many people and aged 32, if he can also raise awareness of keeping these rescue services available, that’s even more good he’s done, isn’t it? Every day is a blessing and he couldn’t have lived that long only to die in a ditch. He’s been a massive part of my life and I’m so grateful for what [the fire service] did.”
Rupert and Darren at Rupert’s 30th birthday party
A spokesperson for West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service said: “Although attending animal rescues is not a statutory duty for fire and rescue services, it is a service we always try to facilitate where possible. This includes engaging with control rooms across the country to use borderless mobilising to ensure the next nearest/quickest resource is sent to deal with the incident.
“We are currently undertaking a review of our technical rescue unit as part of our specialist capability review – a commitment within our community risk management plan.
“Any changes will be aligned to the risks within the county, and data will be used to make informed decisions.”
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