For this week's Bubbler Talk, from our stable of questions, we merge two listener inquiries about horses in Milwaukee.
Bubbler Talk question asker Christine Gross asked us about the "ponies" that used to be just south of the Third Ward.
"It's rare to see a herd of ponies in the city, and they were all black, and they were really furry, like they had been outside for a long time. I think it was in February or early spring," Gross says, explaining her question.
Most of those ponies were part of the Milwaukee Police Department Mounted Patrol Unit, at their former stables. Our second Bubbler Talk question asker Sarah Fadness also asked us about the police horses. She says she had seen the unit outside the Brewers baseball stadium.
"I grew up in north central Wisconsin and rode horses as a kid. I mean, I'm not passionate about horses. But I certainly hope that they're happy and well cared-for and I think they're beautiful animals," Fadness explains.
The horses seemed in very good shape the other day when WUWM visited the police department's new home for horses on Lincoln Ave., a few blocks east of I-94.
Indoors, there are stalls and a riding area. Outside, there is another riding area and a paddock, or enclosure where the horses can be fed or rest. Sgt. Logan Jeffery brought along a bag of low-sugar treats to encourage several horses to come over to the paddock fence.
The horses eat right out of Jeffery's hand.
As the horses gobble away, Jeffrey, who supervises the Mounted Patrol Unit, introduced us to four of the other equine members.
There's Turbo, Jeffery points out, the unit's largest horse.
"This here is Fish, and Fish is named after a fallen officer, George Fish, who was killed in the line of duty in 1970. This guy walking up now, his name is Tanner, and he's named after Wendolyn Tanner who passed away in 1996. And this guy's name is Bill. He's our smallest horse," Jeffery explained.
Small is a relative term. Jeffrey said these are percheron or percheron cross draft horses weighing 1,500 to 2,000 pounds and measuring 16-18 hands — that's about 70 inches high.
He also said there's some variety in personality in what's called MKE Urban Stables.
"Bill is like the class clown. He's one of the youngest horses. So, if there's anybody that's going to start playing or start running around and doing whatever, Bill is usually the instigator" Jeffery said.
But Jeffery said on the street, all Mounted Patrol Unit horses are well-behaved. There are ten animals now, and a recently purchased 11th horse is away for the standard 90 days of training.
Jeffery said the nine police officers in the unit have to be hard-working and good with the public. They help care for the horses, and need flexible schedules because before COVID-19, the unit would be at more than 130 events per year. That's in addition to at least one horse patrol daily downtown or in the Third Ward.
Jeffery said he wasn't around horses before joining the unit, and sometimes prefers teaching other officers who don't have equine experience.
"Because now you're training an officer who is a blank slate. They don't have any bad habits from previous riding, whether it's formal or informal, family or friends or things like that," he said.
Jeffery said being on a horse allows an officer to see more than when on foot or riding in a vehicle. He also said the horses are typically good for community relations.
"People want to come up and ask about the horse and touch the horse, pet the horse. So, it's a good way to engage officers with the community, by using the horse as kind of a way to break the ice," Jeffery said.
But as ABC News reported last year, mounted patrols aren't welcome everywhere. There have been controversies at the U.S./Mexico border and in some cities during the George Floyd protests.
Jeffery said he's heard some criticism. "Like everything, we do have people who don't really agree with using horses, or if there are horses at certain events or certain venues at that location. I would say that would be a great minority, and it has not risen to the level of any reason to make changes of how we do things."
ABC News also reported that a few police departments are eliminating mounted patrols as a cost-saving measure. But Jeffery said the MKE Urban Stables were largely built with donated money. An equine therapy agency with its own horses shares the space and the police department funds help operate the city's unit. But there's also a Mounted Patrol Foundation that pays for some equipment or feed. The foundation holds fundraisers and accepts donations.
The hope is to keep Turbo, Fish, Tanner, Bill and the other horses happy and serving the public.
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