'Rescuing animals has been my life's work'

When Jim Green joined the fire service in 1996 rescuing animals often meant little more than determination, guesswork and a willingness to get muddy.

Three decades later, techniques he helped pioneer at Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue are being used by emergency services across the UK and around the world, helping him earn the New Forest Diamond Jubilee Award.

The accolade recognises people who have made a significant contribution to the forest and rural communities.

Lyndhurst based Green, an animal rescue tactical adviser for the fire service and director of the British Animal Rescue and Trauma Care Association, said the award marked the latest chapter in "a life's work".

"The award was recognition of this embryonic work which started in the New Forest, that's had such traction and such impact across the world," he said.

When he started Green said there were no formal techniques and everyone was just doing the best they could without the equipment and knowledge they needed

He remembers firefighters using hoes and digging with their hands to free cows trapped in mud.

But one incident in particular proved formative.

"It began with a horse that was trapped in a cattlegrid in Brockenhurst," Green recalled.

"Where the firefighters turned up and didn't know how to effectively deal with it."

He and likeminded colleagues looked for "better ways to approach animal rescue".

This led them to the United States to learn from veterinarians who were already developing formal animal-rescue techniques.

He brought this knowledge back home and began training members of the fire service.

"There's a little field we rent from the Forestry Commission next to the fire station in Lyndhurst and in that field we trained 95% of UK fire services," Green said.

He also worked with rural communities and veterinary professionals to develop a more collaborative approach to animal rescue.

Green said: "The big thing about the vets and the rural community and the emergency services working together is breaking down those cultural barriers, getting people working seamlessly together."

The results of the training were clear, as Green remembers a tricky rescue when three shire horses were trapped in a bog in Basingstoke.

"There was only about 12 inches of body sticking up out of the mud with their head," he said.

"The incident commander came out of the reeds and shrugged, he really couldn't see a way to achieve this."

Using their knowledge and techniques they were able to rescue all three within three hours.

"Which was an extraordinary feat in those days," Green recalls.

From then he notes how animal rescue has "dramatically improved" over the years.

The expert has gone on to rescue everything from a python stuck inside a Ford Fiesta to a dog with its tail trapped in a stair lift.

Green said the biggest challenges he had faced over the years had come from humans rather than animals.

He said: "When we go to a fire or a car crash everyone stands on the pavement behind the nice tape and lets us do our job. When an animal is in trouble, there's a high chance of people wanting to intervene, to try and help that animal."

He said often when animals are in distress the best thing can be to give them space and allow the experts to do their jobs.

"A horse owner knows more about horses than I do, but I know about rescuing horses," he said.

Green said one of his proudest accomplishments was working with and educating different communities.

He said he has worked alongside racecourses across the country, trained farmers on wildfire techniques and worked at the last two Olympic games with vets ahead of the equestrian events.

"Being able to make a difference is really important and bringing cultures together," he said.

In recognition of his work, he was awarded honorary associate membership of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.

"If we can make people, animals and communities safer, then that's great," he said.

"This continues to be the journey. There are always more things we need to address and we'll never stop learning."