The Columbus Police Mounted Unit doesn’t horse around.
The specially trained officers and nearly a dozen horses wrangle traffic and crowds at festivals and special events, and they make connections wherever they go.
This year, the unit is marking four decades in the saddle.
The unit works out of a barn north of the Hilltop, with the officers upstairs and the horses housed in the stables below. It’s an old building – the barn was built in the 1890s for city sanitation horses, according to officer Sandy Silva, who has been with the mounted unit for more than a decade.
The barn was, well, a dump. Silva said it’s located where the city used to bring its trash.
“When you look out that window, you can see downtown. They never thought that the city would get out this far in the 1800s,” Silva said.
By the time the building was finished, however, sanitation wasn't using horses anymore.
“So not one single horse was ever in this barn until the mounted unit horses came there,” Silva said.
“We’re up high. We can see things in a crowd that the officers on the ground can’t. We can go places the officers can’t go faster."- Columbus Police Officer John Blubaugh
The mounted unit
Today, the barn is home to 11 horses. Two of them are set to retire this year, with another expected to finish up its service next year. A few of the horses are also still in training, though the officers note that every day is a training day for all of the horses.
The current mounted unit was formed in 1984 under CPD's traffic division. Then-chief Dwight W. Joseph wanted to make police more approachable because people kept trying to flag down police cruisers.
The unit started with seven Quarter Horses, including two that were donated, and seven officers. The unit has been active ever since.
Of course, Columbus police, like many other police departments, had a history of using horses well before the formation of the unit in 1984.
“We always had horses for transportation. They had horses that pulled the wagons where they put the prisoners,” Silva said. “You can see old pictures in our historical archives. The traffic unit...we actually have a 1922 photograph.”
Today, the unit has five officers and falls under special events. The mounted unit patrols the city’s festivals, lead parades and funerals and visit community groups.
The horses can be used for crowd control and more, according to officer John Blubaugh.
“We’re up high. We can see things in a crowd that the officers on the ground can’t. We can go places the officers can’t go faster,” Blubaugh said.
Community liaisons
The unit’s main purpose, however, is still to make connections. Everywhere the mounted unit goes, folks want to meet the horses. Blubaugh said people come out even in the bitter cold of winter.
The horses also can help diffuse tense situations.
Last week at Red, White and Boom, a man was shouting and being confrontational with officers, Officer Brian Newsome said.
“Next thing you know, his hands out. Next thing you know, I hear him go, 'I love these things,'” Newsome said. The man calmed down, and while he was still a bit annoyed with the officers, he was happy to pet the horses.
Silva said it was the same when then-Vice President Pence visited Reynoldsburg in 2017. A protest crowd formed.
“They were not happy in their chanting and yelling. And then next thing you know, you hear, ‘can we pet the horses?’ It was a chant. ‘Can we pet the horses?’” Silva said.
The protesters did get to pet the horses, and Silva said they left peacefully soon after.
The horses are expensive, but Silva said the unit’s budget for their care is $120,000 annually, which is less than two police cruisers. That doesn’t include officer salaries.
“Everything we ask a horse to do here is outside of their nature."- Columbus Police Officer Sean Spearkhawk
Training, training, and training
Of course, protests and firework displays aren’t places horses would usually choose to be. Horses are prey animals and tend to seek safety, Silva said. That’s why CPD’s horses undergo training every day.
Big Mike, a former Amish horse, was practicing walking into barriers on Tuesday. Guided by officer Sean Sparhawk, Big Mike pushed a rolling contraption made of barrels and PVC pipes. The officers call it the Flintstones Car.
Big Mike was also practicing being around flares. Spearhawk said the horse doesn’t like the smell.
“Everything we ask a horse to do here is outside of their nature,” Spearhawk said.
When asked how he liked his training, Big Mike sniffed and considered eating WOSU’s microphone.
The horses also train by visiting Columbus neighborhoods, where they run into things like construction vehicles, leaf blowers, bicycles, ducks, umbrellas and very scary floating plastic bags.
“Normal things that people take for granted are not necessarily things that you should take for granted when you're on a horse,” Silva said.
The officers expose the horses to the things that frighten them over and over until they’re used to them. Silva gave the example of “wacky wavies,” the tall, waving balloon creatures that flop in the wind.
The horses didn’t like them, so the mounted unit bought a few and left them near the horses. Eventually, the horses got so comfortable that they would eat while the wavies bumped into them, Silva said.
Building trust
Even with all the training, though, the relationship between the horses and officers requires trust. Horses are herd animals, and they can tell when officers are unsettled, Silva said. Plus, there’s no breaks on a horse, and they can think for themselves.
“It's a symbiotic relationship. The horse trusts the rider. The rider has to trust the horse to a point,” Silva said.
