A horse that tripped and got stuck along the Polly Ann Trail is doing just fine after being rescued by the Addison Township Fire Department.
A 9-1-1 call was made by Clawson resident Diana Glace after her horse, AJ, tripped while going for a walk along the trail on Friday, March 19.
Glace fell off the horse and hit her head, and the next thing she remembered was her friends calling her name asking her if she was okay.
When she got up and saw the condition her horse was in, she immediately called for help.
‘She was on her back, wedged down between two trees and her hind legs were under her and there was no way she could get up,? Glace explained.
After getting off of the phone with dispatch, she called her veterinarian and was informed that she was out of town at the moment, but the emergency veterinarian, Dr. Charles Becker, would come out right away.
‘Dr. Becker stopped everything to come out and help a horse that wasn’t even his client,? Glace said.
When the fire department arrived, they wanted to take Glace to the hospital for observation, but she didn’t want to leave until she was sure that AJ was going to be ok.
The fire department had to use extreme caution since AJ’s positioning was unnatural and dangerous.
‘They worked on her right away,? said Glace. ‘They took my reigns and made a halter out of them, and Dr. Becker was around her head and they put a strap around her back and hind leg.?
The straps were then hooked up to the patrol car and they pulled AJ out.
Dr. Becker then did a quick check of AJ and told Glace that there were no broken bones and that everything was going to be ok.
Glace added that the fire department did an excellent job because of a volunteer training session they went through last year on this exact situation.
‘If they hadn’t taken that class, they might have been wondering what to do. But they all knew what to do because of that class,? she said.
Glace, who has been riding AJ for over 17 years, said that everyone was amazed at how calm she was able keep AJ while the rescue process was going on.
‘I was very hysterical when I first saw AJ in that position. But as soon as I calmed down, she became very calm and trusted me. I patted her and said AJ, we’re going to get you out. Everytime they did something, I would tell her what they were doing so she knew,? Glace added.
‘This is a long time relationship and she trusted me. And if she had not and fought, the rescue would have been much harder.?
Glace added that she wasn’t charged by Dr. Becker, that he considered it a community service.