The San Benito County Equine Evacuation and Assistance Unit
recently helped a horse get free that had been stuck in the mud,
according to the sheriff’s office.
The San Benito County Equine Evacuation and Assistance Unit recently helped a horse get free that had been stuck in the mud, according to the sheriff’s office.
The San Benito County Sheriff’s Office formed the unit in September for such rescue efforts. After a deputy was dispatched to a report of a horse getting stuck in the mud on Rocks Road at Highway 156 at 9:30 a.m. Jan. 30, he observed a brown horse stuck in the mud that could not get out, said Undersheriff Patrick Turturici.
The homeowner was not there at the time, and the deputy could not locate the responsible party, he said. That deputy then called in the equine assistance unit, which freed the horse. Animal control officers arrived to take over care of the animal.
Authorities started the horse-rescue unit because, Turturici said, “They’re valuable, and we’ve never had a program like this.”
The unit is especially useful in the case of emergencies, such as a flood.
“We’ll now have a unit that can go out and rescue these horses and put them in a corral to keep them safe,” he said.
