What began as a peaceful paddle down Alberta’s Kananaskis River turned into a life-saving adventure for two University of Calgary students.
Environmental science majors Anna Gleig and Ava Haddad were soaking in the summer sun, drifting along calm waters, when something unusual stopped them in their tracks: a horse had entered the river and was blocking their path.
When they looked to the side, the reason became heartbreakingly clear, a tiny foal, pinned against the concrete of a bridge support, was barely keeping its head above water.
“He didn’t fight back against us,” Haddad told CBS News. “He just let us take him, so that worked out really well.”
Without hesitation, the two sprang into action. Gleig, a former lifeguard, led the rescue while Haddad helped push and paddle. They managed to guide the 90-pound foal back to shore, but new worries surfaced, his mother had run off.
They waited, hoping she’d return. But every time they tried to leave, the foal would wade back into the river, needing rescue all over again.
“I ended up putting my life-jacket on him and picking him up and putting him in the boat with us,” Gleig recalled. “And miraculously, somehow he was calm enough, and was OK with being in the boat. He took a little nap there because he was just so tired.”
After paddling on, they connected with someone from a First Nations community who recognized the foal and reunited him with his mother by day’s end.
Looking back, Gleig and Haddad are proud they were in the right place at the right time. As they told CBS News, they’re just glad they were able to give him a “second life.”
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