Kiparra was close to death when her owners finally found her, hidden under bushes on the edge of their property, but following a seven-hour rescue she is now on the road to recover.
According to the mare’s owner, Rosie Robilliard, ‘Kip’ has a history of wandering off, so she wasn't concerned when she first went missing.
“Since our property is large and bushy she easily disappears, but she usually comes back on her own,” Rosie told H&C. “As each day passed and nothing was coming up from our searching efforts I was getting frustrated and worried.”
It was Rosie’s husband Josh who finally found the 20-year-old mare after four days of searching.
“It is quite amazing, because if he had been standing even a metre back from where he saw her, he would have completely missed her,” said Rosie.
“As he was walking along the swampy area along the creek her came across an small embankment and his first thought was that that wouldn't be a good place for a horse. As he got closer, that's when he saw her.”
Rosie burst into tears when she was told that Kip was still alive, but the mare was still far from saved. When the vets arrived, they told the couple that Kip had about a 10-20% of surviving, as she was suffering from hypothermia, dehydration and toxemia, and could have a range of other health problems including multiple organ failure and fractured legs.
“We had the decision of euthanising her straight away, or taking her to the equine clinic and making a decision after they had checked her out more thoroughly,” said Rosie. “I felt she needed a chance.”
The Blue Mountains police rescue was called in to help get Kip out of the creek, who then called for back-up and specialist equipment.
"We were fortunate to have the assistance of RSPCA, specialist vets and Fire and Rescue New South Wales on hand to assist with the rescue,” Ian Colless, coordinator at the Blue Mountains Police Rescue Squad, told H&C.
“These types of animals rescues are rare in the Blue Mountains so we were lucky to have specialist support readily available.”
While Rosie and Josh waited for the various emergency services to arrive they tried to keep her warm with rugs, give her water and reassure her.
“We were using a metal drink bottle which she grabbed hold of in her teeth, like she couldn’t get the water in fast enough,” said Rosie.
According to Ian the rescue was particularly challenging because the creek was around five feet below ground level, and it was very muddy. They also had to take extra care as they didn’t know the extent of her injuries.
“There were some issues with one of her eyes due to it having been in the mud for several days, as well as a few cuts, which I assume she picked up either falling in the creek or thrashing trying to get out,” Ian said. “But we were unaware of how injured she may have been which was problematic in terms of handling her and moving her.”
The rescue teams carefully dug down to Kiparra and after being sedated by vets she was “hand-hauled” onto a rescue glide using ropes and straps. The mare was then secured onto the glide and hobbled, before being dragged out of the creek using an electric winch on a police rescue vehicle.
Kippara was then given further treatment by the vets and attempts were made to get her back on her feet. However, the mare was too weak to stand so she was put back onto the glide and hauled her into an RSPCA trailer, which took her to Agnes Banks Equine Clinic.
“We were fortunate to have the services of the RSPCA, who have one of the only rescue glides in the state, her local vet and vets from Agnes Banks who took care of her during rescue and after she was rescued,” said Ian.
“It truly was a team effort by everyone involved. “We are very happy that Kip was able to be successfully rescued and that she appears to be recovering well."
Rosie said that she was the emergency crews, who spent nearly seven hours rescuing their horse were “absolutely amazing”.
“We were both humbled and amazed at everyone's professionalism and the care, compassion and respect that they all showed to Kip,” she said.
Kip is now back home with her Rosie and Josh, where she is “doing well”.
“The vets are very happy with her progress,” said Rosie. “However she still has a long way to go before she is close to 100%. I miss her being herself but I know it's just time she needs to continue healing and no doubt she is still feeling the effects of her ordeal.”
(Horse and Country - Sept 3 2013)
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