RARITAN TOWNSHIP, NJ (Hunterdon County) – Fire responders assisted with getting a fallen horse back on it’s feet Friday morning in Hunterdon County, according to a post on the Flemington-Raritan First Aid and Rescue Squad’s Facebook page.
On Dec. 23, at 10:41 a.m., the rescue squad responded to a farm on Old Clinton Road in Raritan Township for a horse that had fallen in it’s stall and was unable to get up, the post said.
Upon arrival, personnel met with the staff at the farm who advised that “Velvet”, a 13-year-old horse who was already under care for a leg fracture and on stall rest, had apparently slipped and fallen in his stall and was unable to stand up on his own, authorities said.
Velvet is part of “Team Velvet”, a non-profit charitable organization that provides equine facilitated mental health services for children, the post said.
Personnel carefully slid Velvet out of his stall and under an existing opening into the attic of the barn. Some 6″×6″ timbers were used to span the attic opening and distribute the weight of the horse over several joists. A TU28 Griphoist was anchored outside to the rear of Heavy Rescue 495, with the wire rope run through a snatch block hung from the lifting beam down to a point above the horse, the post said.
Several round slings were assembled into a lifting bridle around the horse. A Paratech 610 strut and some cribbing was used in the attic as a buttress shore to prevent shifting of the lifting beam caused by the angle of the wire rope entering and exiting the snatch block, authorities said.
The Griphoist was then operated to slowly lift the horse to his feet. He was held in place for a couple of minutes to make sure he was steady on his feet. When he seemed ready, all of the rigging was removed, the post said.
“Hopefully Velvet’s healing will now continue without further incident,” the squad said. “It’s not always people that need a helping hand.”
