Dresden fire brigade saves Iceland pony from a life -threatening trench!

Dresden fire brigade saves Iceland pony from a life -threatening trench!

On May 24, 2025, the fire brigade was remarkable in the Spiegelweg in Eschdorf when an Icelandic horse fell into a freshly excavated ditch. The horse stood in the water up to the neck and could no longer move. The situation became extremely worrying for the owner and a companion until the fire brigade arrived to save the animal. A total of 23 emergency services from the Albertstadt fire and rescue station and the Eschdorf district fire brigade were on site to help.

To free the horse, the fire brigade first secured the surroundings and built a ramp out of excavation material. With the support of the people present, the animal was carefully saved over this ramp. A veterinarian has already been informed and was on the way to the site to take care of the animal immediately after it was saved. So far, concrete information about how the horse had gotten into the predicament is unclear.

rescue operations for horses

The fire brigade is often entrusted with the rescue of horses in emergencies, which often entails high efforts and considerable costs. According to horse.de, there is no uniform regulation for reimbursement for such large animal rescues, which means that each municipality decides individually. Exemplary missions are generally carried out free of charge in Bavaria, unless there is gross negligence by the pet owner.

In North Rhine-Westphalia, missions are usually also free of charge, but exceptions can occur if there are intentional or grossly negligent actions. In Schleswig-Holstein, too, the costs vary depending on the municipality and local regulations. In Hamburg, for example, the rescue of a horse from a ditch was invoiced with 1,623.80 euros.

A separate decision about whether the cost of saving the pet owner is often at the discretion of the municipalities to avoid inappropriate hardship. These operations are under the "technical assistance" category and usually have to be borne by the causative party or their insurance.

another commitment of the fire brigade

At the same time, there was another fire brigade in Dresden on the same day. In addition to the animal rescue, there was also a traffic accident with a mini-Hot-Rod. There were 24 emergency services to free a 23-year-old driver from her vehicle after she was injured and was trapped in the vehicle.

Such missions underline the diverse tasks of the fire brigade and the commitment of the emergency services to help both humans and animals in emergencies. The rescue of the Island pony in Eschdorf reminds us of how important the work of the fire brigade is in everyday, but also unexpected situations, and it raises questions about the associated costs.