A Goodyear Police corporal’s history of horsing around paid off for a runaway calf that found itself trying to keep its head above water in a Roosevelt Irrigation District canal Tuesday, Aug. 4.

GPD shared photos on its Facebook page showing Cpl. Michael McFadden on the side of the canal near Van Buren Street and the Loop 303, holding a rope attached to the calf to keep it steady until the owners arrived and helped him pull the frightened animal to safety. Later, the department shared a video of the indident taken by Scout Fejes.

“Corporal McFadden, a true ‘horse guy’ and farmer himself, grabbed the calf and was able to hold it (without going swimming himself),” the post noted. “The calf is doing well and will make a full recovery!”

GPD Public Information Officer Lisa Berry spotlighted Mr. McFadden last September, noting that the patrol officer enjoys spending time at home working his farm with his wife.

“Currently, he is learning how to live self-sustained, growing his own food, and soon, raising livestock,” Ms. Berry wrote. “Most importantly, Corporal McFadden is extremely excited to be a first-time father of a son, who is expected in November.”

A six-year department veteran, Mr. McFadden is a former school resource officers now assigned to GPD’s Patrol Unit. He is a U.S. Air Force veteran who deployed to Balad Air Base in Iraq in 2009 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The calf rescue post generated more than 1,300 likes, 295 shares and 120 comments in just a few hours.

It was the second animal rescue post by GPD since June, when the department shared photos and information about Officer Hawkins Mann’s rescue of a coyote pup that was badly injured when it was hit by a vehicle.

That post garnered 1,200 likes, 116 comments and 84 shares. Ms. Berry reported July 23 that the pup is continuing to heal after undergoing surgery to fix its broken hind legs, and was being prepared for eventual release back into the wild.