Police Horse Training Analysis

Police Horse Training and Treatment: An Overview

Police horses have been used by the Australian Police since 1879. Over the decades additional states and territories have added police horses to their units. Mounted police have further advantages then a policeman on foot, like an elevated 360-degree view when in crowds and the ability to move efficiently through streets. According to Queensland’s Senior Sergeant Mark Paroz ‘In a very simplistic way, QMPU officers perform a combination of general duties, traffic and specialist response that provide operation, community policing and public relations support to the Police Service and the greater Queensland community. The horses are our primary mode of transport to fulfil these functions’.  This

report will evaluate the training and treatment of police horses that adequately prepares them for active service in South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, Western Australia and Queensland.

Key Finding 1: Finding Suitable Horses for Active Service

Police horses often come from rural farms in Australia, according to Senior Sergeant Mark Paroz .

This means they have never had experience with loud cities or busy crowds. This would allow police horse trainers to teach the horses to become comfortable with the city in an experienced and ethical manner rather then someone unexperienced making the horse afraid of noise/cars etc. In addition, it is essential that the horses are exposed to the urban environment for patrolling at various times of the day and night. It takes time and effort to find horses that can make the requirements needed for a police horse. Australian Poem PM Ariel talks about the struggles of finding suitable horses for police throughout the 40’s during WW2. This was because the army was desperate for horses to fight in the war. ‘But Army had a preference for coats a shade of night to join the fray then slip away – too chancy on a white’ The poem talks about demanding horses of dark shades to blend in with dark surroundings. Because all of the decent horses were in the war overseas, there were no suitable horses available for the police. So the decision was made to birth horses especially for the mounted police. This is how the Mounted operations began in South Australia. According to Ross Jacobs ‘a horse should be broken in from the ages of 2-3 years, but should not be worked hard until the age of 5, so the horse has had a chance to mature and fully develop to avoid injury.’ This means that there was

still a shortage of police horses for several years while the young horses were maturing.

Since the end of both of the world war’s, SAPOL have progressed from breeding horses, to buying horses. According to Senior Mounted Constable Kellie-Anne at SAPOL, ‘the mounted unit buy or are given horses from the ages of 4-8 and base their choices on temperament and personality. When asked ‘do you start training when the horses are ready to be broken in or do you prefer them to come to you already broken in with basic ground and riding work?’ Kellie replied with ‘We usually prefer them to be broken in so its easier to tell whether they will be suitable for the mounted police. It can take up to 8 years to train a horse for what is required so we need to be picky with the selection’ Sergeant Tamara Cooper from NSW police further supports this by saying ‘We have a minimum height of 16 hands (1.63m) and they have to be a horse that has a good temperament, good performance horses and capable of doing the job.’ From this evidence, it is apparent that the police horse training has changed throughout the years to reflect on the current trainings. The poem states ‘Stood at 15 hands, too short for service’ means the police still had strict guidelines that eligible horses had to meet before becoming a police horse.

Key Finding 2: Training of Police Horses

According to Queensland’s Senior Sergeant Mark Paroz ‘we expose them to numerous articles and noises at the unit to familiarize them with this stimuli prior to patrol activities.

This involves walking over coloured items, flags, drums, umbrellas, flapping material and the like. We regularly train with the Police Pipes and Drums Band to expose them to both music and loud noise. I often say there is no right or wrong methodology, as long as the experience is positive and assists in preparing the horse for patrol activities. Training is ongoing and, on any given day, horses are receiving some type of education that reflects their individual needs and focuses on their development.’  Training is kept ethical by making sure the horse is never too stressed or the horse in desperate need of a necessity (food/water/shelter). Police horse training can range from 2 years to 8 years, depending on the state or territory. Every single police horse in Australia goes through a similar training system that is divided into three stages. Another resemblance is that the horses are treated very well when on and off duty. The senior constable in the South Australian mounted unit said ‘The horses and their needs are always first priority here because they give us excellent service when on duty so we feel obligated to treat them with the same respect. The Mounted Police designed to handle problems and situations which require more concentrated attention than can normally be provided by the General

Patrol Police and/or which call for tactics and/or equipment which cannot be used by patrol members in uniform.’ . This is further supported by Senior Sergeant Phil Grear who said ‘It is tough, for an animal that is a flight animal, so to get them to move forwards towards what they may see as a threat takes a lot of hard work and it does take time.’
Senior Mounted Sargent Kellie-Anne says ‘the horses go through three stages of training and they are all based around getting the horses comfortable with the roles and expectations of active work.’ . ‘Police horses and riders are trained to cope with all aspects of police work including patrolling, riots and crowd control situations, missing person searches and ceremonial duties such as the Anzac Day Parade. This is accomplished by well practiced horsemanship as well as exposing horses and riders to cross country riding (jumps), cattle work, nuisance and public order (riot) training.’. This shows that both SA and WA have similar guidelines for training of the horses, the similarities would mean the two states could converse and learn new training techniques together to better improve the mounted police force in both states.

Key Finding 3: Ceremonial Events

This Sydney Herald newspaper photograph was taken during a training session to prepare to escort the Royal family during a visit to Sydney. The caption states ‘Livermore, inspects the precisely drilled N.S.W. Mounted Police escort at the Police Barracks yesterday. The policemen were rehearsing their coming duties as escort to the Royal couple in Sydney and Newcastle.’ This photo shows the importance of the police horses and how they were respected and trusted to escort the Royals. An extensive length of time would have been spent on the presentation as the standards of escorting would be very high and any mistake would have been noticeable. The Victorian Police supports this by stating ‘The Mounted Branch still performs a small amount of ceremonial duties, such as regal and vice regal escorts. Some parades are still attended to by the branch, including Anzac Day and the Grand Final Parade. There is a very high standard for the mounted but they never fail to do Victoria proud.’
Western Australian Police state on the official website ‘An encounter with police is something most people try to avoid, but officers of Western Australia’s Mounted Police Unit tend to attract people. You see them at public events like the recent St. Patrick's Day Parade in Perth, and you see members of the public admiring or even petting their horses - in other words, having a pleasant and friendly interaction. Mounted police are particularly useful at public ceremonial events where their high vantage points allow them to see over crowds’ says Sergeant Erik. This shows that there are some similarities between WA and NSW in regards to communal events, but some policies are still distinctive to suit the city’s requirements.

Key Finding 4: Duties

According to the NSW Police website, other then participating in ceremonial events and patrols, Mounted Police can also complete searches - mainly in country areas or outer suburban areas, in national parks, for lost persons, escapees and drug plantations. and Stock mustering - Mounted Police can assist RSPCA, officers and impounding officers in mustering stolen or emaciated stock, and are equipped to assist Police in recapturing runaway livestock. . The Queensland Mounted Unit uses their horses for similar purposes: Mounted patrols are often carried out in the city and suburban areas, as well as parklands and beaches. Mounted patrols are also used for special events such as political rallies, marches, sporting events and music festivals. Mounted searches Officers are trained in conducting mounted searches in large tracts of open country, forest, bush and scrub land for missing persons, stolen property and evidence in serious criminal matters. Crowd management Officers and their horses are trained in crowd management techniques and VIP protection. Their skills are often engaged at large public gatherings and sporting events. Community relations Members of the Unit are always thrilled to attend local schools and clubs, and are able to provide informative talks about the Unit's role and history, as well as horse care and management to various community groups.

Key Finding 5: Ethical Treatment

According to SAPOL’s Senior Mounted Sargent Kellie-Anne, ‘the training of the police horses influences the training of the officer’s personal horses and some officers even copy training with their horses. The training has been tested and modified by experts and has evolved to suit contemporary needs of the police. The Mounted unit trains all of the horses so they are suitable to all officers but they all have horses they usually take out to build a special level of trust so the horse is comfortable with rider in stressful situations. We prefer horses to be broken in so it is easier to tell whether they would be suitable for the mounted police. It can take up to 7 years to train a horse for what is required so MOU need to be picky with the selection. .

Key Finding 6: Riders and History

The NSW Police Force states that ‘All constables are responsible for the care and maintenance of their own saddlery and the grooming of their individual horses. In addition to this, they also maintain the cleanliness of the stables. One day a week is devoted to training of horses and personnel with instruction given in troop drill, crowd control, escort duty and various equestrian skills as well as police procedures. Police at this section have very diverse skills and training. . Spending one whole day (in NSW, Queensland and WA) or half a day (SA and Victoria) means that the horses wont forget the training spent on them and will ensure that the horses are still up to the high standards that they need to be for service. The Official WA recruitment website reads ‘All police officers who have completed their two-year probation period are eligible to apply, only officers with plenty of frontline policing experience and a decent level of physical fitness should apply. Riding experience is not essential.’ . Kellie-Anne a mounted constable at SAPOL says ‘A mounted Officer is the dream job for any horse lovers who want to give back to the community. We have 20 police officers here; some have been here for over 22 years. The mounted unit is very difficult to get into so once you’re in, you never want to leave.’ . The idea of using horses in the police force came from the positive feedback from the British military. This is supported by the book Mounted Police in N.S.W which reads ‘Mounted Police were recruited from a British military regiment stationed in NSW at the time, to protect travelers, suppress convict escapees and fight Indigenous Australians. The NSW Mounted Police Unit is the oldest continuous mounted group in the world. The transformation of the Mounted Unit is reflected by the changing nature of today's society. The majority of mounted police duties consist of operational support in public order, crowd management, and mounted patrols throughout the Sydney CBD, suburbs and country areas.’ . This shows that the training and duties of a mounted police officer originally came from the duties of a mounted soldier during War’s in the 1800’s.

Conclusion

According to the key findings, the training and treatment of police horses does in fact adequately prepares them for active service in South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, Western Australia and Queensland.

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