Child injured after falling off a pumpkin patch pony ride

REDLANDS, Calif. (FOX 11) - One Fullerton family was relieved Monday night because their daughter was okay from what they called a traumatic accident.

The Smith family said it didn't want to sue Live Oak Canyon Pumpkin Patch for the incident that happened Saturday night, nor did they want the business to be shut down.

They said they wanted staff and employees to undergo better training on how to respond to emergency situations.

Using his cellphone, Richard Smith recorded his 2-year-old daughter, Paisley Smith, as she passed by on a pony.

"Paisley! How are you doing?" Smith could be heard talking to his daughter in the video.

The pony ride here escalated quickly. Right after Paisley waved the pony she was riding on jerked then she fell off.

Smith and his wife, Arline Valdez along with staff agreed the girl was strapped into her saddle.

What happened next was up for de Rae between the parties. Smith told reporter, Leah Uko he hopped over the fence to pick up his daughter who was being trampled on by the pony.

Valdez said no employees were in sight. "There was no attempt to try to save her immediately. The employees just scattered."

She continued. "To be a mom and see your daughter almost die in front of you over this huge animal, I was shaking even 6 hours after."

Live Oak Canyon Pumpkin Patch owner, ReaAnn Rameson was very apologetic, but took issue with the parents' claims.

She told FOX 11 over the phone that three staffers who were trained at EMTs responded immediately.
Rameson said only the manager stepped away to call 911.

She claimed it was the family who kept arguing with the EMTs while they tried to do their jobs." Valdez said the manager argued with her when she said she wanted to take her daughter to the hospital for additional care.

"And he's like 'no they do know how to handle the horses'," she said. "I'm like 'I'm letting you know, that all the staff members left my daughters to die'."

Paisley's vital signs were good, but mentally parents say the girl was still scarred. "Yesterday she kept telling me 'mama no more horses. Mama horses went like this to me'."

Mom and dad said staff was not prepared to save their kid's life. They wanted everyone at the pumpkin patch to be properly trained on emergency response. "We don't want a parent to go through that," said Smith.

Rameson said staff knew what they were doing. She gave us this statement that read: "And our staff closed the ride for the rest of the evening. We are currently running an investigation into what happened this past weekend. Live Oak Canyon would like to extend our deepest sympathies to the family, patient and all parties involved. Our biggest concern is the safety of all customers, animals, and staff. We will continue strive to do our best to support that. We just thank God everyone is okay."

Children wanting to ride the ponies should be a maximum of 65-pounds.

Copyright 2017 FOX 11 Los Angeles : Download our mobile app for breaking news alerts or to watch FOX 11 News | Follow us on Facebook , Twitter , Instagram , and YouTube It's a common incident no parent wants to happen to their child: being tossed from a pony.