FIRECREWS from Okehampton were called to rescue a 17hh shire horse from a bog at woodland near Sourton on Sunday afternoon.
The crews had to cross two fields to get to the animal, which weighed around a ton-and-a-half and was stuck up to its neck in thick mud.
Station officer Ian Donovan said although a vet was on standby, the animal was fairly quiet as the crews worked for two hours using special mud mats to pull him out of the bog.
?As we excavated by hand, we were able to put hose reels under him to make a platform,? said Mr Donovan.
He said the horse seemed in fairly good condition considering his experience.
Mr Donovan said Okehampton fire crews have been very busy during the last week with up to three calls a day.
They joined firefighters from Moretonhampstead and Chagford on Sunday night, when they fought a gorse fire at Castle Drogo, which covered around 30 acres on steep hillside.
And following a chip pan fire at a home in Okehampton, Mr Donovan warned residents to extinguish flames using a damp cloth, rather than throwing water on the pan.
?If you do that, it spreads more quickly and can flash over and ignite other items in the room,? said Mr Donovan.