If there’s a horse, cow or some other large animal in trouble, rescue personnel on Whidbey Island should be trained to make the save.

Toward this goal, The Backcountry Horseman group of Island County is part of a committee organizing to train local firefighters and other first responders on how to rescue a large animal in the case of a horse trailer accident or other incident.

“The Backcountry Horseman Club have sponsored one firefighter from each of the fire districts but we need help getting out the word about this event to obtain more supporters and or attendees,” said Jerry Lloyd, an organizer.

“In the current economy the fire departments and others, including the sheriff have no funds for training.”

The training event will take place at the Race Road Fire House Friday and Saturday, Sept 26-27. It will be conducted by a company from California that does this as a business and the trainers are themselves firefighters and horse owners. The company has a Web site at www.largeanimalrescue.com.

Anyone interested can contact Lloyd during the daytime at 206-730-2519.