There aren’t a lot of wild horse populations roaming around the earth anymore, and those that are still here are often faced with extinction or loss of habitat.
The wild horses who reside in and around the Danube Delta in Romania and Ukraine are a tragic example of that.
While some people believe that they’re increasing in number and are disturbing the biological ecosystem, these horses are being very poorly treated and are often hunted down to be slaughtered.
In other words, it seems like the local population of Letea isn’t fond of the wild horse population.
Horses are often found killed and they’re mainly regarded as a meat source.
Sometimes, they use inhumane traps which leads to a slow and painful death.
Luckily, there are also people around who only have the best intentions for these majestic and peaceful animals, such as the Four Paws animal rescue and care team.
Ovidiu Rosu, one of the vets of the animal organization, spotted one of the horses with a terrible chain trap around the animal.
The two front legs were completely chained together, making the horse practically immobile.
Aside from causing obvious discomfort and pain, horses also tend to panic and freak out because they simply can’t escape their predicament.
When veterinarians come across a trapped animal, they usually follow a couple of guidelines to rescue the horse safely – both for the horse itself and the person attempting the rescue.
Ovidiu grabbed a tranquilizer gun to put the horse to rest, making the rescue a lot more simple and a lot less dangerous.
Safety first, of course, for both of them. If the horse wouldn’t be tranquilized, the risk of him running off and hurting himself (or the vet) would just be too high, so they generally don’t take any chances.
As soon as the horse is paralyzed and can’t move, they actually cover the eyes to make sure the animal stays calm. They’re often still conscious, and covering the eyes makes sure to keep them pretty restful and it also stops them from panicking.
Luckily, this horse was in very good hands.
Aside from vet Ovidiu, the horse was also with a friend who was watching the rescue attempt carefully at a distance. The other horse knew that they weren’t in any danger.
Both of the front hooves were tightly chained together.
This horse was practically immobilized. The only thing he could do was try to hop away, but it’s not nearly as fast and it’s also very painful.
Putting horses in chains means that hunters can return later to finish the job more easily – they’re much easier to prey on and can’t defend themselves or run away.
Sometimes, the chains even cut into the horse’s skin if it’s been there for a longer period of time.
Now that everything was properly examined, the vet knew exactly what to do.
Armed with pliers, Ovidiu actually started to loosen up the wires around the ankles and hooves of the horse.
The video clearly shows how restricted the horse is in its movement – there’s just no way that this horse would be able to move again on his own.
After he’s done, you can tell that the horse and his friends are very thankful.
The whole time, the chained horse was watched and guarded by one of his protective friends. It’s just a heartwarming sight to see how the other members of the Danube Delta care for each other.
The horses also seem to know that the Four Paws team are ‘the good guys’, and even try to thank Ovidiu for his efforts.
After a little while, the tranquilizer wears off and the horse is ready to move on his own again.
If you take a close look, you can see the horse blowing the rescuer a kiss!
The Four Paws rescue team always makes sure that a rescued horse can stand and walk independently before they leave.
As soon as the horse was back on its hooves, Ovidiu and his partner knew the rescue was successful. Another job well done!
Definitely make sure to watch the amazing rescue video below.
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Source: Four Paws International, Artefact Magazine
