‘No more playing hide and seek!’ Wall has to be dismantled brick by brick to free wedged yearling

Meet Howard, a yearling Welsh section C who got himself into a “bit of a pickle” – and had to be freed from a tight spot by dismantling a wall, brick by brick.

Firefighters and vets came to the rescue of Nebo King Howard, who had got himself wedged between a barn and the wall yesterday (16 December).

Owner Amelia Short told H&H that despite early fears, Howard walked away with only superficial injuries.

“I hope he’s learned his lesson!” she said.

Amelia said she bought Howard in the summer to keep her other yearlings company, and had brought them in for some handling. They were in a barn with no gaps in the walls – nor any apparent reason for an escape attempt.

“I was tacking up in the yard and heard crashing, went round and he was just wedged,” she said. “I don’t know why he decided that was the best way out.”

Amelia said at first, Howard’s hips were not stuck but he went up slightly, twisted, and was irrevocably wedged.

“He thrashed a bit but then stood calmly, and luckily the other two in the barn didn’t freak out; they just stood by him,” she said.

Amelia called her vets Ballinger Equine and Howard was sedated but they realised he was too stuck to be freed. Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service sent three appliances and the animal rescue team and brick by brick, Howard was freed.

“He walked out as if he’d just had a bit of sedation to be clipped!” Amelia said. “He’s completely sound; a couple of grazes and that’s it.

“It’s a very old wall and three bricks thick – I don’t think they build them like that any more – so my next job is finding someone to rebuild it but luckily the people whose yard it is were lovely and just wanted him to be safe. I’d joked when we put them in that if they’d jumped out of the barn, that would have been impressive; I didn’t expect him to go through the wall!

“He coped really well with it all; the firefighters were brilliant, so professional, and the vets were amazing. I can’t thank everyone enough.”

A spokesperson for Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service said it was a “perfect example of teamwork” between crews and the vets.

“Poor Howard the horse got himself into a bit of a pickle, getting wedged between a building and a brick wall,” he said. “One-year-old Howard was sedated while crews carefully dismantled the brick wall to release him. He was able to be freed after an hour with only superficial injuries that will soon heal. No more playing hide and seek, Howard!”

Ballinger Equine also cited the quality of the teamwork.

“All’s well that ends well,” a spokesperson said. “As you can see, he is pretty unscathed despite the ordeal and happily in a stable munching hay.”

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