ASHEBORO NC — It was quite the weekend for a local family after fire and rescue crews were called to help free a horse from a muddy pond.
Aaliyah Ratcliffe had went to a family friend’s to purchase another horse and ended up also getting 7 yeay-old Rose as a rescue. “We are taking her on as pair.” said Ratcliffe, “I’m helping with the journey of getting her back to health.”
Rose had only been in her new pasture for 30 minutes, “She was put in a small paddock that had a pond on one end” said Ratcliffe, “she tried to cross the grassy area of it, and I believe she didn’t think it was mush underneath.” Ratcliffe said the horse had only been stuck a few minutes before they noticed and started calling for help. “We first called a lot of our neighbors”, Ratcliffe said, “everyone has horse experience, and my neighbor Pam Hucks, which is a like a grandparent to me, called the fire department for us.”
Guild-Rand Fire Department, Ash-Rand Rescue and Randolph County Animal Control were all dispatched to help free the horse.
On a post on Facebook Guild-Rand Fire said crews used webbing, pulleys and ropes to rescue the horse. Rescuers were able to pull the horse to safety, and Rose was covered in a blanket to help warm her up and was eventually able to stand up and be walked to a stall where she could rest and recover. Monday that post had almost 300 reactions with people congratulating the rescuers for a job well done.
“It was a crazy day for sure” said Brandy Longmire a neighbor who snapped photos of the rescue. “We really have remarkable neighbors on this street. Crazy things like this happen here a lot and we always all show up to help. I’ve lived here 7 years. I’ve never seen a neighborhood like it.”
Rose is recovering well today and Ratcliffe says she plans to work with Rose to help train her to work with children.
Photos Provided By – Aaliyah Ratcliffe / Aaliyah Ratcliffe