Local volunteers aid massive Arkansas horse rescue

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Kyle Held of Arkansas talks to one of the horses rescued in Fulton County, Ark. Held, the Midwest director of ASPCA Field Investigations and Response, coordinated the rescue of 116 horses with the help of four North Country firefighters.
The horses, seen here, are continuing to recover, though two were euthanized after the raid. The horses' owner is now facing more than 100 animal-neglect charges.
Josh Wood, Shawn Emerson and Don Uhler, Saranac firefighers; and Kim Gordon, a Morrisonville volunteer firefighter, helped rescue the neglected and malnourished horses in Arkansas.

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January 23, 2011

'We did everything we could to help'

ANDREA VanVALKENBURG Press-Republican The Press Republican Sun Jan 23, 2011, 02:28 AM EST

SARANAC — When most North Country residents were celebrating the holidays, a handful of local firefighters stayed busy helping a massive horse-rescue effort in Arkansas.

After months of investigation, police and officials with the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals descended on a Fulton County horse farm, where they reportedly found 116 neglected horses and three dead cows.

The mid-December discovery brought dozens of ASPCA employees and volunteers from across the country to the area for what has become a continuing effort to help the ailing animals.

'JUST AMAZING'

Among the many volunteers who assisted in the effort were four Clinton County firefighters: Saranac Fire Chief Don Uhler, Saranac rescue instructor Shawn Emerson, Saranac volunteer Josh Wood and Morrisonville firefighter Kim Gordon.

"A lot of the horses had been quarantined, and there were horses in need of medical attention," Uhler recalled of his week-long stay in Arkansas in late December.

"We did everything we could to help."

Kyle Held, Midwest director of ASPCA Field Investigations and Response, who coordinated the rescue, said, "The four guys we got from up there were just amazing.

"They came in letting us know they were willing to do anything, and that's exactly what they did."

Held said the four volunteers did everything from fixing tractors to installing fencing and cleaning horse stalls, staying busy with whatever tasks they could to help.

"The guys just made it a much better working situation," Held told the Press-Republican.

GROWING STRONGER

The horses are continuing to recover, though two were euthanized after the raid.

"They're all doing a lot better than they were," Held said. "They've overcome a lot of the illnesses.

"It's amazing what a little bit of food and TLC can do for a horse."

Held said the horses' owner is now facing more than 100 animal-neglect charges.

Looking back on the trip, Emerson said he was glad to be part of the effort, though "it was definitely a lot of hard work."

JOINING FORCES

Both Uhler and Held said the rescue took a tremendous amount of effort by multiple agencies and shows how the collaboration of many can prove to be a success.

"These things take a lot of planning, and it was very rewarding to be part of," said Uhler, who recalled how many of the skittish animals began trusting the local volunteers as they worked with them during their stay.

Saranac volunteers and a number of firefighters from neighboring departments have joined forces with the ASPCA in recent years, working together during disaster and rescue trainings to bolster local responses.

Their partnership has not only helped the immediate area, but was a benefit during national responses, such as the Arkansas effort and also in 2009, when Uhler and Emerson helped the ASPCA during a 400-animal rescue in Wisconsin.

"It's kind of neat working in a big group with people from all over the country," Uhler said, noting that their trips were entirely funded by the ASPCA.

"Our partnership is very much alive and has grown above and beyond the disaster standpoint."

local rescues

While their work has taken them across the country, Uhler said, many local shelters and animal groups are also counting on community support.

"There's a lot of great folks and animal-rescue groups here who need our help, too."

As he reflected on the latest trip and hoped residents will step forward to help local agencies, Uhler said the experience was life changing for those involved.

"And now these animals will have another chance at life."

E-mail Andrea VanValkenburg at: avanvalkenburg@pressrepublican.com