Clop, clop, clop, clop.
They trudge along the streets of Old Town on a Thursday night.
Clop, clop, clop, clop.
Officers with the Wichita Police Department Mounted Unit use horses to help control the crowd leaving a popular night club.
Hours earlier, other officers on horseback patrolled an area of Broadway near downtown, riding between buildings and in other areas cars can't go, looking for people causing trouble.
Police on horseback serve an important community relations function, while providing some tactical advantages for keeping streets safe.
14 officers and 7 horses make-up the unit. All of the officers have full-time assignments with patrol bureaus and work with the mounted unit as needed.
"If I'm on horseback it'll take me literally 30-40 minutes to get down a block because everybody comes out and wants to talk and pet your horse," said Sgt. Ed Brower, who supervises the unit.The horses come from a variety of backgrounds, but all are accomplished in some type of discipline. One is a former western pleasure horse, others have worked for rodeos or herded cattle. Good police horses are well-trained and unflinching.
During mounted training, officers put the horses through a gauntlet of exercises. They throw footballs or bean bags near the horses' heads, shake large jugs of rocks near their ears, and walk the horses across strange and uneven surfaces.
It's all designed to build trust and make the horses expect the unexpected. "De-spooking is what we do because we don't want our horses to be afraid," said Brower.
Height and intimidation are among the advantages to policework on horseback. Officers ride about eight feet off the ground, allowing them to see over large crowds and push their way through. Horses can also ride into areas patrol cars can't, allowing officers to more closely investigate off of main roads.
"It does take a special horse. Some horses will never be able to handle the stress like when you talk about explosives and firearms and things like that," Brower said.
The Mounted Unit operates on a budget of about $30,000. The money pays for feed, boarding and care at Aces High Stables in Derby. Community donations are also a big factor in the unit's success.
