Firefighters rescue Pedro the horse from Urmston bog

Pedro the horse was lifted from the mud using special animal rescue gear

Fire crews from two Greater Manchester stations have won a battle against thick mud to rescue a stranded horse.

Firefighters from Stretford and Eccles Fire Stations worked for more than an hour to pull 15-year-old Pedro out of a ditch in Urmston.

Eccles station manager Paul Smitham said the horse "was in a very distressed state" when the crews arrived.

However, he said that once free, Pedro "righted himself and trotted off".

The crews were called to Newcroft Farm, near Urmston, after receiving a report that there was a horse stuck in a mud-filled trench.

The horse had broken through an electric fence and slipped down a muddy bank into heavy mud.

The rescue left the fire crews almost as muddy as the horse

Mr Smitham said that the area where Pedro had fallen was "churned up" due to recent bad weather.

As a result, he said the crews had had to use "special animal rescue gear - including boards and ropes - and sheer muscle power to remove the horse from the bog, lifting it over steep banking onto firmer ground".

"Having done this, the horse righted itself and trotted off which was quite gratifying for the crews to see," he said.

Pedro is reported to have suffered no injuries as a result of the incident.