Little Fork Volunteer Technical Large Animal Rescue Team

09/22/2026

September 11,12,13, 2026 - Little Fork's Volunteer Technical Large Animal Rescue Team hosted an operations level class held at our station. Additional training pictures...

Please remember that we are a 501c3 organization and 100 % of Facebook donations are sent to us. We operate from your donations! You can go here to donate: https://www.littleforkvfrc.org

09/22/2026

September 11,12,13, 2026 - Little Fork's Volunteer Technical Large Animal Rescue Team hosted an operations level class held at our station. The course was a total of three days in length. We had 40 members attend the class and practical scenarios. Dr. Rebecca Gimenez taught the course. Dr. Gimenez, BS, PhD (animal physiology), is the President of Technical Large Animal Emergency Rescue. Her first book, Technical Large Animal Emergency Rescue, was published in 2008. She is an internationally sought instructor in technical rescue techniques, procedures, and methodologies, and has published numerous critiques, articles and journal submissions on horse safety, technical large animal rescue and horse handling issues. Dr. Gimenez teaches TLAER around the world and assisted with writing the NFPA national standards on Technical Rescue techniques for fire and rescue. She was assisted by Dana Lacy from Christiansburg, Virginia.

We express our gratitude to the numerous supporters of the course. This included the Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Fire Programs; Bobcat of Northern Virginia (excavator); Dwayne Higgins (excavator operator), Higgins Excavation and Verdun Adventure Bound for site usage (stalls, creeks and holes that were dug.)

This event provided the required training for our EMT's and Firefighters to be considered as qualified as TLAR Technicians and members of our world famous team!

Please remember that we are a 501c3 organization and 100 % of Facebook donations are sent to us. We operate from your donations! You can go here to donate: https://www.littleforkvfrc.org

09/19/2026

Little Fork Volunteer Technical Large Animal Rescue Team Benefit Trail Ride!

Registrations are now open for our Fall Benefit Trail Ride! Visit
https://littleforkvfrc.org/2026-benefit-trail-ride
to download registration form and register today.

The Little Fork Volunteer Technical Large Animal Rescue Team is the only all-volunteer group serving the Commonwealth of Virginia that is trained and equipped to rescue horses & cows.



Little Fork Volunteer Fire and Rescue Co.

09/16/2026

09/16/2026

September 3, 2026 - At approximately 0900 hours the Little Fork Volunteer Technical Large Animal Rescue Team was requested to assist with a 23-YO Belgian Draught horse that was down in the Waterford (Virginia) area. The owner and vet had been working with "Beauregard" trying to get him up since discovering him down early that morning. There was no history of any medical issues. Nothing appeared to be broken. They worked with him throughout the early morning and decided to request our assistance. The vet was sure that if we could get him back on his hooves he would probably stand on his own.

On August 20th Rappahannock Electric donated a used F550 4x4 truck to our volunteer Company. The truck has a 5-ton crane mounted on it. We have been looking for something like this for some time. Without our own lifting vehicle, we have had to rely on a tractor belonging to a nearby farmer or property owner. If that isn’t an option, we can use our team’s portable tripod lifting system. This requires setting up its three long, heavy sections of aircraft aluminum and requires time and effort — both important considerations during a rescue. We plan to paint, letter and install emergency lighting on the truck. In fact, the painting is scheduled. The Chief authorized the unit to be placed in service for this call. What better way to “test” the vehicle? Part of our team drove it to the scene non-emergent.

We performed a size up and selected a tool staging area. It was decided to use our Becker Sling to lift him with our “new” truck. Tactical assignments were made. Helmets were distributed and equipment was assigned. The Becker sling was attached to Beauregard. The truck was placed in position and the outriggers were extended. Beauregard was lifted without incident and slowly lowered to where he could stand in the sling. He was left in the sling while the sedation wore off. He was eventually lowered to the ground and then released. The sling and rigging were removed, and Beauregard slowly walked to his field. He began to eat and drink and appeared to be OK. We retrieved our equipment and returned to our station. We had just successfully lifted a 2200-pound horse!

We are happy to report that the donated truck is going to greatly improve our operations and has greatly increased the safety of our crews while performing large animal rescues. We are estimating that it will require approximately $50,000 to retrofit the truck to carry the specialized equipment carried in our trailer. Your donation will make a big difference!

We do not charge for our service. Our volunteer fire and EMS providers perform this service for free. We are a 501c3 organization, and your Facebook donations are sent to us. We operate from your donations! You can also go to our website to donate.

https://littleforkvfrc.org/

08/21/2026

🐾💙 Some dogs come to us with quite the story. Comet is one of them. 🐾💙

Comet, a 1-year-old Husky/Malamute mix, was recently surrendered to us after his owner’s work hours increased and they could no longer give him the time and attention he needed.

During Comet’s initial behavioral evaluation, we noticed that one of his feet was bandaged. When we asked about it, his owner told us the story behind it — Comet had recently fallen into a 35-foot-deep abandoned well and had to be rescued by The Little Fork Volunteer Technical Large Animal Rescue Team.

We later came across their post about the rescue, and wow… what a story. ❤️‍🩹

Comet had been paddling in the water for an unknown amount of time, keeping his head above water while rescuers worked for about an hour and a half to safely get him out. The team even used a prototype well-retrieval device they had developed, and after a lot of perseverance, they finally got Comet secured and pulled him to safety.

And the best part? Once he was out, he shook himself off, got up, and greeted his rescuers like nothing had happened. 🥹

We are incredibly thankful to Little Fork Volunteer Fire & Rescue and everyone involved in getting Comet to safety that night. We’re also grateful to his former owner for calling for help when Comet needed it and for trusting us to care for him and help him find his next home.

Comet is a good boy who has already been through quite a lot in his short life. Now, we're looking forward to giving him the fresh start he deserves. ❤️

He’ll be available for adoption soon after his neuter. Keep an eye out for this handsome boy! 🐾

And if you’d like to support the team that helped save Comet, consider donating to Little Fork Volunteer Fire & Rescue using the link below. They provide these services completely free of charge and rely on donations to keep doing this important work. ❤️

https://littleforkvfrc.org

08/14/2026

August 9, 2026 – At approximately 00:50 hours Little Fork’s Technical Large Animal Rescue Team was requested by Fauquier County to assist with the rescue of a small animal. Comet, a one-year-old husky-malamute mix was discovered trapped in an old well on Springs Road. It was unknown as to how long he had been in the water. His crying and whimpering woke his owner. Well rescues are a confined space rescue that require highly specialized training and equipment. These incidents are thankfully few and far between. The last well rescue we assisted with was over three years ago. Over the past twelve years, we have experienced only one rescue (a cat) where the animal survived the ordeal.

Due to these experiences, we developed a prototype of a well retrieval device using webbing, rope and weights. It had never been used before, except for some testing using a stuffed animal in a water filled trash can.

We responded with our TLAR unit and our Chief. Upon arrival the team could hear the dog whining and yelping for help. We deployed lighting and assessed the situation. The dog was paddling in the water and whining throughout the rescue. The well was approximately 35’ deep. There was debris around him from the broken boards. We cleared the undergrowth and trees for better access. The dog was keeping his head above the water by paddling and occasionally clawing on the rock lined sides. Time was critical as he had been in the water for some time. Our team first tried a 30’ reach stick and found it to be too short.

We deployed three 200’ ropes and rigged up our well retrieval device. The challenge proved to be getting the webbing under the dog. Three technicians worked feverishly to rescue the tired dog. Time was running out. Suddenly, one of the technicians advised that he had a rope slung around the dog’s neck. This gave us the ability to move him around in the water and assisted with keeping his head out of the water. The crew continued to work and finally got one front and one rear leg into the webbing. Once he was secured, the team retracted the three ropes lifting Comet up and out of the well.

Success!! He was out of the well and you can bet he was held until a leash was placed on him. He was removed from the immediate area. He laid down for a short while then got up, shook the water off and greeted his rescuers. We found nothing wrong with him. Our crew gathered our equipment and returned to quarters. The time to make the rescue from set up to retrieval was about an hour and a half of pure perseverance.

Sometimes…. things work out. We thank the responding crew and the numerous other volunteers who staffed our EMS and engine company while we were committed to this rescue.

We do not charge for our service. Our 100% volunteer fire and EMS providers perform this service for free.
We are a 501c3 organization and your 100% of your donations help with funding the team. Again, we operate from your donations!
You can also go to our website to donate. https://littleforkvfrc.org/ THANK YOU !!

08/12/2026

Our next trail ride! See you there !

07/03/2026

July 3, 2026 -- Fireworks of any size in close proximity to a barn is enough to send most horses into a blind panic, leading to exhaustion, sprains and strains or potentially devastating injuries.
Fences, hay, and bedding are just a few of the highly flammable items found around horse farms. Avoid the risk altogether and leave the fireworks to the professionals. In most cases, it’s best to keep your horse outdoors where he won’t feel trapped.

However, if your horse isn’t accustomed to being out at night, keep the routine consistent. Here are some other ideas you may want to consider.....

A large turnout area is preferable to a small paddock. If your horse is in a small area, there’s a possibility of running through the fence.
Check your horse’s stall or turnout area for any hazards such as broken boards or holes that could injure him if he does run around.
If your horse is in the barn, leave a radio on playing soothing music. The background sounds may help dull the shock of firework noises.
Watch out for your own safety and don’t try to stay with your horse in the stall or next to him in the pasture to comfort him. If the fireworks do cause him to try and escape, you won’t be able to stop them and will risk getting yourself injured in the process.
As a last resort, if you’re certain that your horse is going to have trouble, ask your vet about administering a sedative beforehand.
Start planning ahead for next year. The best defense against fear of fireworks is to desensitize your horse to unexpected sights and sounds using positive reinforcement.....Please do not forget about the "little guys and gals" too ..take pics of them and make sure that they have a collar with an ID....