July 2020 Issue

Page 4 July 2020 EAST COAST EQUESTRIAN By Suzanne Bush Throughout the world streets are filled with people demand- ing change. The pictures of flag-and-banner-waving throngs have become something like a Rorschach Test. Are the protests the first draft of a revolution that will cause irreparable damage to society, or are they a logical and necessary answer to seem- ingly intractable problems? After a winter of pandemic-in- duced discontent morphed into a spring that has been anything but silent, it seems the ground is shifting. In every state there are demonstrators and protesters and counter-protesters—all testing the levers of government and the boundaries of the First Amend- ment. Amid the crowds in big and small cities there are mount- ed police whose horses seem attentive yet detached from the mayhem. They stand quietly, shoulder-to-shoulder with their equine compatriots, while the officers on their backs scan the crowds, looking for signs of trouble. To the average rider, such nonchalance might seem otherworldly. But it is both the norm and the prerequisite for horses in mounted patrols. Officer Eric Lukacs of the Lancaster (PA) Bureau of Police says that getting a horse ready for these fraught situations takes time, patience and trust. “You Police Horses Bridge the Gap Between Cops and Citizens don’t just say to the horse ‘I know you’ve never done this be- fore, but tomorrow there’s going to be a protest…’” He says that the horses on Lancaster’s Mounted Patrol Unit have had extensive training. “They’ve done this; they have experience and training and are prepared to stay calm in the midst of the noise and tumult.” Start with the Right Horse Lukacs’ partner, Liam is a 17.2 hand Clydesdale-Hackney cross from Toronto. They’ve been together for 14 years. When the Mounted Patrol Unit started in 1979, Lukacs says they accepted donated horses and trained them for the work. “Initially that worked out but as time went on, taking donated horses, we realized that people were giving you a horse because they wanted the horse to have a good home. We decided to purchase horses because you can hold people accountable versus getting a horse that might have some hidden injuries or other problems.” He says they have been using various internet sources to find potential horses for the unit, and typically negotiate a 90-day “tri- al” contract to purchase the horse. “There’s no distance we won’t travel to get a good horse.” So, what do they look for? Lukacs says that they are look- ing for horses that are curious, not fearful. Although there is not a minimum size require- ment, bigger is better. “We look for a larger vantage point in a crowd. We want to be above all that. Larger horses allow us in a tight crowd situation to see 50 to 75 rows back in that crowd to see if there’s anything going on,” he says. “It may be a peaceful protest or concert or event and there are three or five or six people that are a problem. We can see it where an officer on the ground can only see two or three rows.” He says they look for draft horses because they seem to have a good demeanor in crowds. “They’re very secure in them- selves.” Before Anything Else, Trust Once they bring a new horse onto the force, Lukacs says the first job is to build trust. “We groom him, spend time with him, let him know that we’re not going to ask anything of him. The first couple of days we just spend the day grooming the horse. Groom him and let him go. Groom him and let him go. All these things take days. Then we just ride him, walking, trot- ting and cantering, no obstacles at first.” After the horse has become more comfortable in his new home, and there is a level of trust, Lukacs says they begin the process of introducing the horse to some of the distractions the team might encounter on the job. “We use humane things to throw over their heads to get them used to it,” he says. Things like nerf footballs and soccer balls. “We bring in volunteers that wave signs and yell and approach the horses and go up to their faces. So, we can teach the horses to stand.” But unruly crowds rarely toss nerf balls, and they’re not made up of actors waving signs. So the training often gets noisy. “We have various things,” Lukacs (Continued on page 11) Lancaster, PA Bureau of Police Officer Eric Lukacs and Liam, a 17.2 hand Canadian-bred Clydesdale/Hackney cross are an exclusive team. When Lukacs is on vacation, Liam is on vacation. The pair have been partners for fourteen years. Photo credit Jenny Foster.