SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) – The City of Miami Police Mounted Patrol Unit gave a behind-the-scenes look at an elite group of horses training to be on the force, as the recruits who will be riding them are in the final stretch of a rigorous training program.
The horses may be cute, but they are also crucial for a law enforcement agency. The mounted patrol unit is an integral part of safety, crowd control and more.
“It’s great when it comes to crowd control. Everybody already assumes mounted is crowd control,” said Miami Police Mounted Patrol Sgt. Eric Marti. “However, we’re great every day, when it comes to community policing. People just want to come up to you, they want to strike a conversation with you, talk about the horse.”
Before mounted unit officers learn to control a crowd, they’ve got to learn to control their horse, so this program is just as much about training the horse as it is about the officer.
“So, the more stimulus they get here in training, the better they react when they’re on the street,” said Marti. “We do that by exposing them to sirens, lights, the drone and the robot dog, as well as simulated gunfire, loud noises. We throw objects at them to kind of test the ability of the horses as well of the officers to control the horses in those stressful situations.”
Five officers, including three City of Miami Police officers, will be graduating later this month from the rigorous six-week training program.
The mounted patrol unit is the largest of its kind in the whole state of Florida.
“We take an officer that might not have ever touched a horse or experienced a horse in their life, and we take them from the ground, ground work, to how to groom a horse care for a horse, saddle up a horse, and then we teach them how to ride a horse, obviously,” said Marti.
That’s how Marti said he learned about 15 years ago.
“So, I learned everything from the ground up, just like these officers are doing,” he said
Officer Melanie Rodriguez is also learning the ropes. She’s been an officer with Miami Police for about three years and now is mounting a new role.
“I love animals, and I figured that it would be more of a better opportunity to have a one-on-one connection with the community,” she said.
Rodriguez said the process has definitely come with some growing pains.
“I’ve fallen off the horse a few times and, I mean, it doesn’t mean that – it can happen to anybody while you’re riding, getting on, getting off, so there’s definitely painful moments,” she said.
But she’s ready to graduate and take her horse Cody to the streets of Miami.
“It feels super exciting, yeah, very big accomplishment. It definitely has not been easy, but it’s something I’m super proud of,” she said.
So, if you see one of these mounted units out in the city, say hi. They’re very friendly.
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