The Waterloo Fire Department responded shortly after 7 p.m. Wednesday to assist with a horse stuck in a ravine at 3001 Cedar Ridge Lane off Andy Road south of New Hanover.

An 1,800-pound, 30-year-old draft horse named Rossi was apparently stuck in the creek for at least half of the day, one firefighter said.

Waterloo Fire Chief Brett Wiegand said that upon firefighter arrival, Rossi’s owner, Tammy Shartzer, was in the creek with the horse. After several rescue attempts, the fire department was able to safely remove Rossi from the creek with assistance from neighboring farmer Eric Allscheid, who brought over a large front-end loader tractor and pulled him out using nylon straps.

Soon after the horse was pulled from the creek, a veterinarian arrived to check on the horse’s condition, Wiegand said.

“After the horse had a chance to recover from struggling to free itself, it was back on it’s feet and walking,” Wiegand said.

Monroe County EMS assisted the veterinarian by providing fluids for the horse. WFD personnel were on scene a total of about three hours.

“Before we left the scene, the horse was drinking, eating and appeared to be doing OK,” Wiegand said. “We were glad to be able to help and we were happy that it was a positive outcome.”