Tag Archives: The Horse Trust

New Resources – Lifting Project 2024

BARTA are creating a new suite of large animal rescue educational lifting films, with support from Farol Ltd, based in Oxfordshire, who generously supplied us with a telehandler for the filming. Ollie Bensted-Smith brought a Kramer KT3610 demonstrator to our training centre at the Horse Trust to demonstrate the advantages of a machine commonly available in an agricultural setting. Various scenarios were created to show the versatility of the telehandler such as lifting an animal to extract it from an entrapment or when in a restricted space such as a swimming pool. We are grateful to Animal Rescue Accredited Instructors from Buckinghamshire, Cheshire and Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Services, who participated in the filming. As well as demonstrating the types of lifting machinery available, they also helped create new films showing the methods of safely applying harnesses to animals for … Continue reading

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Collaboration in developing resources

Members of seven Fire and Rescue Services, representing the National Fire Chiefs Council Animal Rescue Practitioners Forum, came together to help film the linchpin techniques utilised by UK large animal rescue teams. It has been nine years since we last compiled a comprehensive suite of resources and BARTA are updating materials in line with what we have learned through experience and stakeholder consensus. The films demonstrate a methodical, role based approach to basic techniques which, once learnt, can be adapted to suit the circumstances encountered. Whilst the films don’t have their audio as yet, you can get a good idea of the format and style we are looking to deliver. Resource packs for Team Leaders and Instructors provide essential information in line with National Operational Guidance and support learning gained through BARTA’s Large Animal Rescue Team Leader courses, which (all … Continue reading

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Fire and Vet Liaison Evening

Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service (HFRS) hosted a veterinary liaison evening in conjunction with BARTA this month. Hosted at Winchester Fire Station and sponsored by Vestaplas, Farm and Stable, the evening attracted 18 members of 8 large animal veterinary practices that support the Hampshire Animal Rescue Team at large animal rescues. The purpose of the meeting was to build relationships, understand each other’s capabilities and discuss ways to support each other in dealing with animal rescues as efficiently and safely as possible. During a panel discussion, useful topics such as escorting vets to reach the scene of a road incident, creating a patient handover record for the owners regular vet and how to manage people at the scene of an incident were discussed, along with other questions that arose from past experiences. Hampshire’s experienced animal rescue team demonstrated some of … Continue reading

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Wildfires – a personal story

This time last year Jim Green our Director of Operations and his family were in California whilst Jim was working for the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. Doctor’s John Madigan and Claudia Sonder invited me to support them in further integrating animal issues during emergencies and disasters within the veterinary and first responder communities. The year was deemed to be exceptional in regard to disaster in northern California with extreme incidences of both fire and flood. During the 2017 wildfires in Sonoma County, myself and the Student Veterinary Emergency Team led by Dr John Madigan supported Animal Control at shelters and behind evacuation lines. They provided welfare and evacuation for animals left behind as the fires overran communities with speed and unpredictability. In 2018 those extreme fires have returned and as I write this families are without homes, emergency … Continue reading

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