Shock as Rutland man told ‘there’s a cow in your pool’

A man who was told a pregnant cow was stuck in his swimming pool said he is over the moon after a successful rescue attempt.

The cream of Leicestershire Fire and Rescue was sent to a property in Ketton, Rutland, on Monday after the cow “checked herself in for a spa day”.

Ian Blackburn said he was on the phone to a friend at the time when a neighbour informed him of an unexpected visitor at his home.

The heifer has now been returned home, and is said to be “fit and well”.

Mr Blackburn said a normal Monday took a drastic turn after the unplanned visit.

“The doorbell went – I was on the phone at the time to a friend – and Andy the farmer was at the door,” he said.

“As I opened the door he said ‘have you looked in your pool recently?’, and I said ‘no, why?’, and he said ‘well, there’s a cow in it’.

“It’s not every day that you spend three or four hours trying to recover a beast from the pool.”

After firefighters drained the pool and used a harness to lift her out, the cow was checked over by a vet to make sure she and her calf were healthy before she was returned home.