Twelve firefighters plus vets and an animal rescue advisor were involved in the rescue of a horse who had become stuck in a ditch beneath a dense hedge line and footbridge.
Marmite was rescued from the ditch unharmed
Marmite, a 16.2hh Clydesdale cross, was found by a member of the public on Sunday 27 June and the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Services (HIWFRS) attended.
It is thought the coloured gelding had tried to jump out of his paddock into a neighbouring field, but instead fell into the ditch.
Crews from Redbridge and Winchester were mobilised, along with the animal rescue unit from Lyndhurst Fire Station and one of the HIWFRS animal rescue experts.
A local vet from Seadown Veterinary Services was quickly on scene and able to sedate Marmite so that firefighters could carry out his rescue the and avoid further injury to the horse.
There were 12 firefighters on scene, as well as local vets and the animal rescue advisor. Marmite was successfully removed and unharmed.
From when the call was phoned in, it took just under two hours for the fire service to arrive and perform the rescue.
“I am so unbelievably thankful to everyone who helped,” said Shelby Ellen, Marmite’s owner. “The rescue could not have gone any smoother, and Marmite got out with nothing but a missing shoe.
“I cannot thank the team enough for saving my boy.”
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service received an award for its work last year. The island’s Animal Rescue Unit, based at Newport Fire Station, received the British Horse Society’s Isle of Wight Equestrian Hero of the Year Award in 2020 to mark its contribution to the equestrian community. The team was presented with the award in June this year after the original presentation was postponed due to Covid-19.
