Farmers Are Heroes After Saving Two Drowning Clydesdale Horses Trapped In Frozen Lake

May 28, 2020 by apost team

Imagine the surprise of some farmers who happened on a pair of Clydesdale horses stuck in a frozen lake and the sheer heroic act that would rescue these mammoth animals from certain doom.

In February of 2019, two 15-year-old Clydesdale horses, named Gunther and Wilhelm from Quiet Valley Living Historical Farm, were rescued from the freezing temperatures after falling in Pine Grove Lake near Straudsberg, Pennsylvania.

When two Clydesdale horses recently broke out of their pasture at Quiet Valley Living Historical Farm near Pine Grove Lake, the farmers and some quick-thinking first responders knew that trouble was ahead.

The pair of horses were seen briefly trying to cross the frozen lake, but their massive combined body weight was too much for the thin ice. The strained ice gave way to the weight of the horses, and they went plunging headfirst into icy, black waters.

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After falling through the thin ice, farmers and first responders went to work. They knew that they had an enormous task ahead of them. The average Clydesdale weighs in at 1000 pounds, so the mere thought of pulling exhausted horses out of icy cold waters was not something any one person was prepared to do.

As rescue efforts took shape, anxious onlookers saw horses bobbing above the surface of the water, and what began as fast movements and attempts to get out of the water themselves changed to apparent exhaustion as they fought seizing muscles and dropping body temperatures.

Rescue professionals quickly made a path through the ice with a heavy boat and used sturdy rescue ropes to pull the exhausted, heavy load from the water. Time was of the essence, as hypothermia was beginning to set in, and it was only a matter of time before the horses would perish in the water.

Deborah DiPasquale of Quiet Valley Farms told WNEP about the rescue: 

"Bless their hearts, they're good strong horses. That was definitely something in their favor."

We're happy these horses got out of the lake safely. Have you ever seen a horse rescue as intense as this one? Let us know your thoughts and be sure to pass this on to your friends and family, too.