PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — A horse is now safe after it was rescued from a canal on Christmas Day in Palm Beach County.
#HappeningNow @PBCFR #Firefighters on location at Golden Gate Stables for a horse stuck in a canal, Barn Cmd
— PBC Fire Rescue (@PBCFR) December 25, 2018
Barn Cmd *update* Horse has safely been removed from canal and is back on dry ground
— PBC Fire Rescue (@PBCFR) December 25, 2018
"We just waited for help and at some point all I did was try to keep his head above water because he was trying to give up," said the horse's owner, Dani Banner. "So that was the scary part. After about an hour, hour and a half, he had just exhausted himself."
Fire rescue officials said crews responded to the 16600 block of Winners Circle in suburban Boca Raton around 12:30 p.m. for reports of a horse stuck a canal at Golden Gait Riding Stable.
Banner said her horse named Don got spooked while they were riding on a trail along the canal. He then stepped toward the steep embankment.
“He had one foot down the bank then the rest of the body just followed and we both literally fell in there," Banner said.
After they fell in, Banner said she managed to get herself out of the muddy, brush-filled canal to yell for help, but 1,600-pound Don couldn't move.
"We were just trying to get him out and he tried to get out on his own, but his hind feet were completely stuck in the muck and he just could not get out," she said.
She ended up holding his head up until emergency crews could pull him to safety.
"He was just laying on his side. I had my body underneath his head and just tried to keep his head above water. That was the scary part," Banner said. "I just kept telling him that I wouldn’t leave him and I wouldn’t give up. I told him not to give up."
Crews worked with civilians to safely get the horse out of the canal and back on solid ground, according to officials. Fire rescue crews also cut down trees to help clear space for the animal to get through once he got out of the canal.
Don wasn't hurt, but he will be checked out by a veterinarian.
"We always had a strong bond and it might be that it’s even better now," Banner said.