Australian rescuers remove cow stuck in backyard pool

April 6 (UPI) -- Emergency responders in Australia were called to a rural home where a cow had fallen into a backyard pool and appeared unable to climb back out.

The New South Wales State Emergency Service said responders were summoned to Gilgandra, in the Orana region, on Saturday evening to rescue a 660-pound cow stuck in the pool.

"We suspect something startled her and she ran through a panel straight into the water," Geoff Kiehne, SES Commander for the Gilgandra Unit, told 9 News. "When we arrived the cow was quite happy and very content in the pool and she was just in the shallow end of the pool."

Kiehne said the rescuers attempted to get the cow to help them with the rescue.

"Because the cow was quite relaxed and appeared very good-natured, we thought we could coax her to walk up the steps of the pool," he said. "We didn't want to distress her because it's much easier working with a cow that's cooperative than one that's not being cooperative."

Kiehne said rescuers had three failed rescue attempts before they were finally able to get the cow to climb the stairs.

"We were very happy with how the rescue went and we're lucky we didn't have to use a crane," Kiehne said. "It was a very unusual event, I've never had a cow in a pool before."