The Lost Acres Fire Department acquired a new piece of rescue equipment this year, one that horse owners hope will never be put to use. The Loops Equine Rescue System, as described from the website, is “a simplified compact lifting or drag system for horse owners, veterinarians, first responders or others to help a horse that is down or trapped. The advantages to this system are that it lifts by the skeletal system, there are no knots, no J hooks, no metal bars and it fits in a small size duffel bag which can be carried without displacing other fire rescue equipment.”
On June 15, approximately 20 members of the LAFD trained on the new equipment with help from Dr. Chris Weber, DVM, and Britt, office manager at Salmon Brook Veterinary Hospital, as well as local horse owner Allison Forsyth, and Sandy, a very patient horse.
The evening began with a video review, compliments of the handy QR codes placed throughout the instruction guide. After some good Q & A between the firefighters and Weber, smaller groups worked through each type of rescue effort while Britt read from the instruction guide. Each person had the opportunity to apply the large green loops to the horse in various configurations depending on the rescue need: forward or rear assist, horizontal or rear drag, rolling a recumbent horse, and the most complex, a vertical lift.
The evening ended with a training session on how to halter a horse, thanks to the Davis family who donated two halters and lead ropes to the LAFD. The rescue system was donated in memory of Missouri, a beloved mount of a Granby Horse Council member, that passed peacefully from natural causes last spring.