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HOOFS Fund Announces Grant to Bethlehem Mounted Police and Gift of Saddle Pads to U.S. Park Police
The HOOFS Fund is pleased to announce that we have provided funds and equipment to two horse mounted units so far in 2011:
In February, several Supracor saddle pads were presented to the U.S. Park Police in Washington, DC (pictured at left). Three of the pads were donated to the HOOFS Fund by the president of the Supracor company based in San Jose, CA. The HOOFS Fund previously provided the unit with a gift of 12 Supracor pads, which have been found to provide important protection to the horses' skin and backs.
In June 2011, the HOOFS awarded a grant of $2,200 to the Bethlehem, Pa., Mounted Police Unit. The unit will use the funds to purchase high-quality saddle pads that will protect their three horses' backs from long hours of police duty.
Thanks to all HOOFS Fund donors for making these gifts possible! The next deadline for grant applications is June 1, 2012. See below for more information on applying.
Have you heard the news? Applications are now being accepted. (Winchester, USPP. Photo: The HOOFS Fund)
Applications for 2012 Grants Are Now Being Accepted
Any federal, state, or local law enforcement agency that uses horses in the line of duty is eligible to apply for funds from the HOOFS Fund. We will consider requests of up to $3,000.
Proposals need to directly relate to the HOOFS Fund's mission in one or more of the following ways:
1. Provide support for police horses in the form of supplies, materials, labor, and/or public awareness; 2. Support the dissemination of research and the sharing of best practices for police horses in such areas as veterinary care, stable management, and training; 3. Foster community cooperation and public/private partnerships that support the safety, well-being, health, and training of police horses.
The HOOFS Fund will consider all project proposals, but preference will be given to high impact ideas with the potential to make a substantial difference in the quality of life for police horses.
The HOOFS Fund is interested in the training and operation of mounted police units worldwide. Join us as we get a guided tour of the London Mounted Police Stables and learn what they do, how they do it, and how it has changed (or not) over the years.
By Diane Sullenberger, HOOFS Fund board member
Just a 30-minute train ride from the bustle of downtown London is the Metropolitan Police Mounted Branch training unit, where 120 police horses and their current and future officers receive world-class instruction and training.
Inspector Alan Hiscox and Sergeant Paul Agnew welcomed me to the facility at Imber Court in Thames Ditton, Surrey, on a cold and drizzly morning in December 2008, a day before their ceremonial duties escorting the Queen in the traditional parade from Buckingham Palace to Westminster for the State Opening of Parliament.
Who Are the Horses?
Lewie, a handsome young gelding in his first few weeks at the Mounted Branch, was one of the first horses to greet me. A gentle giant with hooves as large as dinner plates, he stood patiently in a row of meticulously kept stalls where all the horses have names that begin with "L" to signify their 2008 arrival. Training new horses is a thorough and rigorous program that usually takes six months.
Unlike the U.S. Park Police (USPP) Horse Mounted Patrol Unit, which acquires horses through donations, the London police purchase their horses. Many of them are bay or grey draft crosses from Ireland. Both units have their horses undergo an evaluation period before deciding whether to keep them, either for school or for the street. The horses must prove sound, brave, and willing.
How Are the Horses Trained and Managed?
Established in 1760, the Mounted Branch has a saddlery and a farrier on-site, and police as well as staff trainers. Two large indoor rings, one even larger than the other, and a large outdoor arena are used to school new horses, train new riders, and regularly refresh the skills of experienced officers and their mounts.
Choking clouds of smoke, sounds of gunshots, and flames of fire are just some of the many obstacles the horses and riders must face without flinching before they can be deployed for patrol, demonstrations, football matches, ceremonial detail, and other assignments.
The unit showcases their skill, timing, and agility in the world-renowned Activity Ride. For 8 to 10 minutes at a canter, horses and riders jump over obstacles and through rings of fire while the riders remove their jackets, then stirrups, and, finally, saddles, which they hold aloft in one hand, still cantering over jumps. The unit often performs the ride on invitation and the horses will travel by ferry to perform the ride next in Ireland and Amsterdam.
The Police Horse Place in History
Like the USPP, the Mounted Branch has suffered from budget cuts, public questioning of their purpose, and have seen their numbers reduced from 200 to 120 horses. The Mounted Branch is lucky to have the attention of the Queen, though, with her fondness of horses and the duties they perform, which are deeply rooted in tradition and history.
As part of that duty and tradition, grey Mounted Branch horses provide daily escort for the cavalry horses known as the Queen's Life Guards. When the Irish Republican Army attacked the Life Guards in 1982 with a large bomb filled with nails, the Mounted Branch stood their ground as chaos erupted.
In the end, 4 officers and 7 horses lost their lives and many others were injured. Among the countless historical artifacts at the Mounted Branch museum at Imber Court, some items dating back a hundred years or more, the photos of the bomb scene were the most somber.
For their brave and stalwart service, the London Metropolitan Police Mounted Branch horses, like the USPP horses, need your support to ensure the continued success of the unit and the safety and well-being of the dedicated horses that protect the nation.
Jaguar is one of the horses who received a Supracor saddle pad to protect his back during training class. (photo: The HOOFS Fund)
HOOFS Fund Donates Special Saddle Pads to Protect Backs of Police Horses
The HOOFS Fund recently donated a dozen special saddle pads to help prevent back injuries among horses serving in a Washington, D.C., class for police officers who were learning to ride. Learn more>
Grooming Tools for Police Horses Sent to Former Soviet Republic of Georgia
The HOOFS Fund recently provided grooming tools to a newly-formed police-horse unit in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, thanks to a donation from Oster. Learn more>
The HOOFS Fund supports the health, safety, and well-being of police horses.
We are an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization founded by individuals who care for and about police horses.
A special thank you to Tony Quinn of Cleveland Park Wine & Spirits in Washington, DC, as well as HOOFS former board member Sarah Streicker, longtime supporter Matt Hoye, and everyone who helped make our wine-tasting fundraiser in early October a big success!
In Washington, D.C., MPD Ofc. Andrew Chandler accepts a stocking for Rosie from the HOOFS Fund, whose members delivered goodies to police barns the week before Christmas. (Photo: The HOOFS Fund)
Photo Album: Meet the Inaugural Police Horses
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Inaugural Wrap Up
One horse sustained minor injuries after colliding with a truck and a police horse was treated for illness before the Inaugural Parade in Washington, D.C., on January 20. A team led by the U.S. Humane Society (HSUS) responded.
Police horses from D.C., Maryland, and New York helped manage the 1.8 million people who attended the Inauguration. Here's how they prepared.
Watch the WTOP video> Mounted police units from Michigan and Toronto sent 22 horses and officers to march in the Inaugural Parade down Pennsylvania Avenue following the swearing-in of President Obama.
Help the HOOFS Fund as we work to reduce bird waste at police-horse stables located on the National Mall and with the disinfection and cleaning of the Edgewater Training Facility in Washington, D.C., where up to 25 police horses live and train. Learn more>
