By Jere Hough Meteorologist / Feature Reporter
Published: Thu, January 17, 2008 - 1:16 pm
Last Updated: Tue, January 29, 2008 - 7:34 pm
Last Updated: Tue, January 29, 2008 - 7:34 pm
Jere Hough
Horses are big, powerful animals weighing a half a ton or more. You don't want them to get spooked in a crowd of parade-watching families.
Officers and their horses are "nuisance trained" at the school and then tested during the actual parades. Participants come from as far away as Minneapolis and Boston.
They learn that for some situations, a mounted patrol is perfect. Sergeant Carr explains, " Where a crowd has to be moved, you've got no better tool than for a horse and rider to step in there. If you have five or six horses walking toward a crowd, that crows will back up."
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The Mounted Patrol do a wonderful job every year at the various events needed. Sure the patrol officers are allowed breaks, but what about the horses. Why does the city who relies on the horses at downtown events not have a proper spot where the horses can rest away from the crowds or at least get a drop of water. As noted in the article they are very large and get thirsty. A large fat person who walks around as much as the horses do would get water, so why not the horses. A few years ago the city spent money to restore a watering fountain in Bienville Square that used to be used for horses. Why can they not use it.