Firefighters work for hours to save cow stuck chest-deep in mud hole. See the rescue

Firefighters rescued a cow that had been stuck in chest-deep mud for more than 24 hours, according to fire officials.

Members of the Seminole County Fire Department’s large animal rescue team responded around 1:30 p.m. on April 3 to an area in unincorporated Sanford, a spokeswoman for the department told McClatchy News. At that point, the cow had already been stuck in mud for more than an entire day.

The cow became stuck while trying to get to a pond to drink water, Lt. Elgin Meyers, one of the rescuers, told McClatchy News.

About 10-15 crew members arrived on scene and put down ground pads to shore up the mud around the cow, he said.

The crew members then started to dig around the cow with hand shovels while trying to keep the animal as hydrated and calm as possible, he said. One of the firefighters fed the cow with a bottle.

Once the rescuers had dug out enough mud from around the cow, they strapped a sling under its chest and used another piece of equipment called a “sked” to help lift and slide the animal out of the hole, he said.

The entire rescue took around 2 hours and 45 minutes, he said.

Once the cow was freed, rescuers checked it to make sure it was unharmed, he said. One of the firefighters also sprayed it down with water.

“Everybody was overwhelmed,” he said. “It was a good feeling.”

Sanford is about 25 miles north of Orlando.

This story was originally published April 4, 2023 at 10:47 AM with the headline "Firefighters work for hours to save cow stuck chest-deep in mud hole. See the rescue."