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"Let us look beyond the ears of our own horses so that we may see the good in one another's." - Anonymous
Retirement Jobs
Cities Sampling Arizona New York Puerto Rico Royal Canadian Cleveland
National and International Links
Jobs on their own pages
Therapy Horse, Lesson Horse, Military Ceremonial Horse, Carriage Horse, Broodmare, Companion Horse, see Table of Contents at Left)
Our senior
citizen horses: They are loved and valued team members at many stables. They are useful
well into their twilight years, because we didn't wear them out or break
them in their youth or their prime. Years of training and experience
does not go to waste, but teaches the next generation of horsepeople.
One of the missions of Del
Camino is to help horse owners find timely information that guides them
through this journey. We want to keep our seniors as fit, as active,
as contented as possible, as long as possible. It can be done.
We dedicate our work to a few
of many beloved Del Camino horses: Freckles, who left us at age 43,
Miss Cricket, who delighted children until age 38, Captain Oliver
"Ollie" (photo with girl haltering him for a lesson) who fought Cushing's until age 32,
but couldn't withstand the loss of his best friend of 12 years, Jordan, to
bladder cancer at age 28, and Brandy's Prince,
and Smokey, both of whom had Cushing's which caused laminitis at age 26.
Thank you for having graced our
lives, and taught so many people the joy of horsemanship.
Please read the overviews of the topics before
clicking on links. We can't possibly list every reference available
on the internet, and we do not accept any compensation for a listing.
None of these listings were solicited.
This site is meant to distill information from a variety of sources, as
well as our own experience, before sending you off on your own
quest.
The descriptive paragraphs at the start of a section are there because we
believe they are important.
We update this section of our website fairly
often, so we recommend you return regularly. Why not add this page to
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join discussions in the forum
to share their knowledge or experiences. There are no reviews on
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Topics progress from those
for people caring for their senior horse, to those wishing to place their
senior horse in a new job, and finally, how to prepare for and make
arrangements to euthanize a horse to prevent suffering.
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Del Camino
does not endorse, approve, guarantee, warranty, or otherwise recommend any
product, service, vendor, book,
article, website, webzine, magazine linked on this page
Retirement Jobs
 Sometimes you can't give an older horse the
gentle exercise and continued attention he needs. He may be
serviceably sound for light work, but no longer able to enjoy the strenuous
sport you want to keep doing. If he is still sound on the flat at the
walk, trot, and canter, you may consider finding him a new job where his
years of training and experience will enable him to remain calm under
pressure or cross-train readily. Temperament and ground manners are very important for the
majority of these jobs dealing with the public, with the notable exception of Border Patrol or
Search and Rescue Posses.
These programs do not accept truly aged or
companion-only horses. However, they may give you ideas for other
programs in your area that do. All of the recommendations for
evaluating a hippotherapy facility and its program, or a regular for-profit
lesson program apply when exploring these alternatives. Most of our
examples come from Arizona and surrounding states as a result of our own
independent research in recent years to help place horses. Any program
that would like to be added to our list should
Contact Us, and any horse owner who wishes to let us know about a
program where they were able to rehome their horse is encouraged to
Contact Us.
Across America mounted police perform important
crowd control, provide a crime deterrent presence, patrol parks where
bicycle and foot patrols are not as effective, grace important city, county
and state events from a vantage point, and assist in patrolling our borders.
Most units look for chestnut, bay, or black
geldings, but some accept greys, paints and spotted horses. Age
requirements vary - while one department wants horses between 3 and 9,
another wants horses between 7 and 20 years of age that are sound at the
walk trot and canter with a very mellow temperament. These saintly
steeds will be in traffic, hear sirens, bus engines, see all kinds of things
waved and even thrown at them, smell weird stuff - you name it.
Kicking is not acceptable unless cued to do so, as civilians will walk and
touch behind. Horses go through rigorous training in desensitization
and drill pattern and obstacle course work based on centuries-old traditions
that are proven effective. A variety of breeds are accepted, though
some departments want specific breeds. Horses usually need to be at
least 15.2 hands, large and fit enough to carry over 200 pounds of rider,
saddle, and equipment for most departments. Some departments want the horse
to be16 hands to comfortably carry large men.
Sometimes a disability can be turned into an advantage. John Loope, a mounted police officer in Roanoke, Virginia, rides a deaf Paint named Snoopy.
Police Mounts of Camelot, a Caneyville, Kentucky training and sales farm, specializes in raising and preparing horses for police work on city streets. They prefer draft cross geldings from Percheron dams and Thoroughbred or Quarterhorse sires to get size, bone, soundness, intelligence, and
temperament.
Here we must stress temperament, temperament,
temperament, and soundness without arthritis, as hours standing on pavement
carrying weight are not easy, even with the best sneakers. Most units
estimate that under 20% of the horses offered meet their requirements for
acceptance. Then less than half make it through 3-6 month training programs
without washing out. Don't waste their time with a horse that spooks,
is lame, or has handling issues. "Only 1 out 3 candidate horses make
it to selection training and only 1 out of the next 3 are accepted for use
"(LAPD Mounted Statistics 1999). Up to 50-70% of the horses in a
Sheriff's volunteer search and rescue posse are the personal property of
their riders, but full-time mounted law enforcement unit and public safety
unit horses are generally owned by the municipality, county, or state.
Usually, a police horse that works on pavement, rather than on park trails, wears shoes coated with borium for traction. Borium is a mixture of tungsten carbide chunks in a brass matrix. The shoe is preheated by the farrier with a torch flame, or a forge, then borium is applied using a torch with a low flame to melt it without
burning it. Applied in a thin single layer (not more than 1/8” thick) to protect the shoe from wear and help the smooth metal grip slick pavement, blacktop, or ice. There is no advantage to a thicker layer of borium. Because borium affords the shoe some traction, it is advisable that a horse not used to borium shoes be ridden on soft surfaces before riding on hard, unforgiving
surfaces so as not to cause leg injuries.
Some police units use Equithotics or other cushion boots on front hooves to reduce concussion on pavement, but keep borium on hind shoes since the horse sneakers tend to slip on grass. Others use snow nails (studs) instead of borium. Still others have had excellent success with EasyBoots. Others have experimented with Ollovs (thin metal encased in
rubber) with heel studs for traction in an attempt to reduce concussion and provide traction simultaneously. Regardless of the solution, regular shoes typically wear out on pavement within two weeks, and without borium or studs for traction, are dangerously slippery. Many cities with fancy sidewalks and brick or cobblestone crosswalks downtown and in malls try to find a way to
provide traction without scuffing the decorative paving. All work hard to address the concussion. Many add protection in the form of support boots and wraps besides cushioning shoes.
NOTE: If you are concerned about
the use of your horse in the city amid car and bus exhaust fumes, and
are aware of the plight of most urban carriage horses plying the tourist trade, who in congested stop and go traffic are "nose to tailpipe", put your mind at rest. This is not a problem for police horses. It is much easier for a rider to maneuver his mount away from such vehicles than for a driver to do so for a horse or team pulling a vehicle. Visit the
Carriage Horse page for more information if you need to find a job for a horse that drives.
If you have ever had the opportunity to watch a
demonstration of the maneuvers of a mounted police unit actually moving a
crowd, you could not have failed to appreciate the power of the subtle
confident partnership of horse and rider. The noble service of our police
horses (and dogs) is truly impressive and epitomizes man's partnership with
these two most ancient and enduring friends. If your horse is lucky
enough to be chosen, you must understand, that, like their riders, all our
law enforcement public servants are at risk of bodily injury or death.
Actually, most states have specific laws against teasing, harming, or
attempting to harm service animals, with stiff penalties. Mess with a cop's
vehicle, you are in trouble. Mess with a cop's dog or horse, and you
are in huge trouble. Though very rare, we do know of a police horse that has
been killed in the line of duty in Toronto. Unfortunately, Canadian
police animals do not have the same protections. He was awarded an "Animal
Hero" medal by the Humane Society of Canada. To see some of the
memorials, donations, and ceremonies, and petitions in his honor, visit the
blog of http://brigadiersmemory.blogspot.com
To see how a 20 year old TB/Percheron donated
horse was honored with the prestigious 2002 Chief's Pride award early in his
police career, read this article from the Rochester, NY Daily Record
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4180/is_20020618/ai_n10067832/
Here in Arizona our Scottsdale Mounted Police
unit is outstanding. Watch the video of their demonstration at the
2005 Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show with interview narrative. The
Scottsdale annual mounted school trains horses and riders from all over the
USA :
http://video.aol.com/video-detail/horses-scottsdale-mounted-police-2005/4185044810
The New York Mounted Police retrain many kinds of horses in their Remount
school. There are about 120 officers and 80 horses in the In department stationed in Manhattan, lower Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens. In this video, you will see a retired Pennsylvania Amish
carriage horse working Times Square and Central Park. They are so well
cared for, the NYPD serves a custom mix complete feed!
http://video.aol.com/video-detail/inside-the-nypd-episode-5/37160510 In March, 2007, Troop B of the NYPD moved to a new facility at Pier 76 on West 38th Street.
Read about it here.
Also, ALL NYPD horses are guaranteed a humane retirement. See the advertisement about this sponsored by Blue Horse Charities.
The horses are trained for specialized environments from the mountains,
to the prairies, to the inner cities, and from sea to shining sea.
Here's a video of the Puerto Rico Mounted Unit training at the beach in the
water, "rescuing" their mascot pet dog, and accepting a swimmer alongside:
Of course, no video sampling in North America would be complete without a
clip of representatives of the most famous police horse units of all, the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the "Mounties" of well-deserved legend:
A musical ride (drill team) public performance:
Begin with the websites of your local city
police departments, county sheriff's departments, and state troopers, but be
prepared to cast your net wider to others in your state or neighboring
states, since openings will be few and far between. In California
there are over 100 mounted law enforcement units!
The federal government national park rangers and
Homeland Security (Border Patrol) and the Caisson and Cavalry units of some
national guard and reserve units also need good horses.
As a starting point, here is a new website that
will attempt to function as a national directory:
and a sampling of the websites of several
mounted police units across the country: Many of these units have been
in existence (duh!) for hundreds of years. Others have been formed in
recent decades specifically for crowd control and special event security.
Almost all mounted units also perform ceremonial duties in parades, at
funerals, and other formal public events. In the Southwest, the horse
has become increasingly important for Border Security, to cover backcountry
terrain, so yes, we do have mounted Border Patrol Units.
Large states have so many units they are able to
form professional associations to pool resources for training and
development:
California Mounted Police Association
United Mounted Peace Officers of Texas This
professional association of mounted sheriff's deputies, mounted police units, mounted constable departments throughout Texas also trains civilian mounted posse auxiliary units and rescues, rehabilitates, trains, and then rehomes abandoned and stray horses.
  Visit
Brigade.com for Law Enforcement and Search and Rescue supplies.
We wanted to feature the Capitol Police mounted unit in Washington, D.C. White the Parks Department and other agencies do have mounted units, the horses of the Capitol Police would truly be the nation's horse cops - an important symbol as well as a practical asset to the team that deals with thousands of visitors with a variety of daily and special occasion
needs. But, in its usual infinite wisdom, the U.S. Congress cut funding for this mounted unit and disbanded it in 2005. Want it back? Write your Senator and Representative!
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/05/AR2005090501426.html
Cleveland, Ohio
Lexington, Kentucky
Las Vegas, Nevada
Nassau County, Long Island, New York
St. Louis County Park Rangers
Boston Police Department Mounted Unit
Plymouth County Sheriff's Department Mounted Unit, Massachusetts
Camden, New Jersey Mounted Police Unit
Daytona Beach, Florida Mounted Police Unit
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department
San Francisco Instructor of Courses for Mounted
Patrol Units in Ceremonial Duties and other activities, Stan Buscovich,
gives insight into the important public presence of our mounted units at
formal occasions.
Mounted Police.com is a terrific resource to find a mounted law enforcement unit in your vicinity and for more general information.
The Border Patrol
use of horses has increased 400% in the last five years. Quarter
horses with cutting abilities, and mustangs are highly sought after.
These horses need to be more physically fit to handle the rough terrain and
inclement weather, however, the extremely gentle temperament required of
"city horses" is not as big a factor.
Excellent description of the Border Patrol
Mounted Officers today, and their horses
The US Border Patrol El Paso Unit in the 2005
Presidential Inauguration Parade in Washington, D.C.
 Photo:
Reuters News Service
Mounted Border Patrol at Work in Arizona
http://www.reuters.com/article/inDepthNews/idUSN2323280820080124?
feedType=RSS&feedName=inDepthNews&rpc=22&sp=true
with video
 Colville,
Washington Border Patrol Mustang
San Diego Border Patrol Mounted Unit Saves Lives
During Wildfires
Help the Border Patrol Donate Retiring Horses and Help Border Patrol Agents Adopt Horses They Have Worked With
Please know that DHS horses are protected when their service days end. Opportunities for the patrol horses to be adopted with assurances that they will go to good qualified humane homes are written into the Act of Congress that funds the Department of Homeland Security, and this law recognizes that the federal law enforcement
officer who rode or cared for the service mount may want to provide that retirement home for the horse himself. "S EC. 528. of H. 2638 Homeland Security Appropriations Act for 2009. None of the funds made available in this Act may be used to destroy or put out to
pasture any horse or other equine belonging to the Federal Government that has become unfit for service, unless the trainer or handler is first given the option to take possession of the equine through an adoption program that has safeguards against slaughter and inhumane treatment."
Legislation introduced in 2007 would give the Border Patrol more flexibility rehoming their service horses by removing the government's potential future liability for claims by horse adopters. Please write your Representative and Senator and urge them to support this bill.
10/4/2007--Introduced.
Immunity from Claims Related to Donated Horses Act of 2007 - Requires each humane organization that receives any horse or mule to hold the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including U.S. Customs and Border Protection, harmless from any demand, suit, action, or claim arising from or related to the government's donation of the horse or mule, including damages to the organization's
property and any personal injury, disability, or death of any officer, employee, or agent.
Authorizes horses and mules belonging to the federal government that have become unfit for service to be adopted by the DHS agents who have worked with such horse or mule.
 If
none of the retirement jobs we have discussed are appropriate for your
friend, it is time to just let him hang out and be a horse. It is time
to visit with his pasture buddies most of the day, be groomed by you and
enjoy his gentle stretches and massage to stay comfortable, be
inspected daily for possible injury, illness, or loss of condition or teeth,
and get a treat.
"Advancements in the equine health field have helped to increase the life
of the horse to well into their 30s, but often well beyond their athletic
usefulness. Prepare to be a responsible horse owner and plan ahead for your
horse’s retirement years and beyond. As a horse owner, you should also plan
to set aside an emergency fund for the unexpected but all too common
injuries or illnesses that may occur in horse ownership. One final point for
all horse owners to remember: the horse is a living being whose life and
welfare are in your hands." -- AAEP Health Article What to Expect When
Owning A Horse, Purchasing a Horse - February 15, 2007
[Comment: The emergency fund ensures you have the means to provide
humane euthanasia whenever that time comes.]
The Retirement
Stables
page has links to retirement stables, and information on how to choose one, if you
cannot keep your companion at home.
This happiness should last while he is still fit
enough to enjoy it, a timeline no one can predict. When rapid decline
occurs, when constant discomfort or even pain invades him, you will know.
Your long association as friends and companions will have given you an "eye"
and an empathy that is priceless. No one else will have this insight
into the change in his behavior, his demeanor, his eyes - not even your vet
who has helped you maintain him for years.
When you reach this leg of the journey, please
see it for the natural course of events that life is, and begin to prepare
for him to leave you. Please visit our
Euthanasia and Memorials pages, so that you
will be ready to help him across "The Rainbow Bridge" responsibly, just as
you have cared for him all along. Choosing to own a horse is something
like a wedding vow, and the very best horsepeople are just as skilled at
compassionate elder care, hospice, and end of life care as they are at any
other.
The Del Camino Products and Services catalog offers some horse
products of interest to owners of senior horses.
Horse Welfare Statistics
Equinezone Horse Supply
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