South Whidbey Fire / EMS responded to reports of a couple of four-legged Whidbey residents that needed rescuing over the course of two days.

Sunday morning, the fire district received a report of a horse stuck in a marshy area near Lone Lake. The owners found her up to her neck in mud after searching for two hours that morning when she didn’t arrive at the feeding area, according to an incident report.

“It was scared and wanted out,” Deputy Fire Chief Wendy Moffatt said.

The first responders dug around the horse to release some of the mud’s suction, then used a tractor and straps to lift and pull her out, Moffatt said. The yearling had last been seen the night before, so she had been stuck between three and 12 hours.

Moffatt said the rescue benefited from many of the firefighters’ personal experience owning or riding the animals.

“It was really nice to have firefighters that know about horses to be able to help manage and help calm it down,” Moffatt said. “It’s something we don’t train on.”

Monday morning, South Whidbey Fire received another animal-rescue call of a dog over a bluff. The district arrived with a rope rescue team from Central Whidbey Island Fire and Rescue to retrieve a schnauzer stuck on a ledge about 75 feet down a steep bluff off Fox Spit Road, according to South Whidbey Fire Deputy Chief Jon Beck.

However, while the crew was putting on their harnesses, a Hanson’s Building Supply employee who had been working nearby appeared over the hill with the dog. The employee had been off-loading materials and could hear the whimpering over the hillside, Beck said.

He managed to walk down a path on a neighboring lot and traverse across the hillside to where the small dog was stuck.

“The Hanson guy saved the day,” Beck said.