A 25-year-old mare spent more than an hour trapped belly-deep in mud behind a home on Yew Street in Douglas on Monday afternoon, after she stepped off a trail while being ridden and sank into the muck. Firefighters arrived around 3:45 p.m. to find the horse stuck fast in the woods, kicking off a rescue effort that would eventually pull in crews from across the region.
According to WJAR, firefighters responded behind 97 Yew St. and found the mare stuck in deep mud after stepping off a trail while being ridden. The terrain made it clear almost immediately that this wasn't a job local crews could handle alone.
Crews requested assistance from the District 7 Technical Rescue Team and Blackstone Valley Regional Animal Control because additional personnel and specialized equipment were needed, the station reported. As the afternoon wore on, the rescue was complicated by muddy, unstable terrain and fading daylight, forcing crews to work against the clock in increasingly difficult conditions.
Plywood and Patience Win Out
Rescuers needed about 25 to 30 sheets of plywood to provide stable footing for themselves and a solid surface onto which they could eventually move the horse, per the station's report. The improvised platform gave both the animal and the rescue teams something solid to work from in ground that otherwise swallowed everything that touched it.
After about 70 minutes of careful work, crews freed the mare's front legs and slid her onto the plywood, the outlet noted. From there, the horse was reportedly walked safely out of the woods and back to Yew Street, where she could rest before standing on her own.
No Injuries, But a Close Call for One Firefighter
The mare's veterinarian reported that she had no injuries and was eating and resting comfortably following the ordeal, according to the same report. Crews remained at the scene for about two hours in total, and while no injuries were reported overall, one firefighter was evaluated by Leicester EMS for a medical complaint.
The Douglas Fire Department credited Firefighter/EMT Morgan Norton, whose experience working with horses helped crews safely care for and free the mare, the station said. That kind of specialized knowledge often makes the difference in large-animal rescues, where panic and unpredictable movement can turn a bad situation worse in an instant.
A Multi-Agency Push to Get the Job Done
The rescue drew support well beyond the Douglas Fire Department itself. Leicester EMS supplied a paramedic-level ambulance and an air/light truck as part of the technical rescue team, Webster Fire Department provided station coverage back home, and Central Mass Rehab 78 supplied hydration and support for the rescuers working in the mud and fading light.
Rescues like this aren't unheard of in New England, where muddy trails and old barns occasionally turn into traps for horses. In New Hampshire, a horse named Mac was freed after getting stuck in deep mud at Bear Brook State Park near Beaver Pond in Deerfield, an incident in which passing mountain bikers helped keep his head above the muck and worked to push him out, according to WMUR. That rescue also drew at least three fire departments and nearby animal groups, including the New Hampshire Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
A different kind of horse emergency played out in Plainville, Massachusetts, where a horse fell through the floor of a shed into its basement. Rescuers there placed a ramp inside the basement, and the veterinary and horse technical rescue team used a harness to walk the horse right out, with officials noting the roughly 20-year-old animal had no injuries at the time.
Back in Douglas, fire officials said they were grateful for a positive outcome and framed the rescue as a demonstration of teamwork, specialized resources, and community partnerships. For a mare now resting at home after being transported back following the ordeal, it was a muddy afternoon with an ending that could have gone very differently.
