Police horses are a familiar sight on our streets today, playing an important role in crowd control at large public events such as football matches, protests, and carnivals. They can also be seen patrolling the streets and parks regularly as a deterrent to would-be criminals or performing ceremonial duties, such as escorting the daily Royal Guard change at Buckingham Palace.

On regular patrol duties, the horses typically walk nine or 10 miles each day. This can rise to 16 miles if the mounted officers are escorting the royal troop of soldiers from their barracks in St John's Wood to the centre of London.

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When were police horses first used?

Mounted police were first seen on the UK streets in 1760 - the year the Metropolitan Police Mounted Branch was founded. As the oldest section of the Metropolitan Police, it is still in existence today, 260 years after its formation.

Originally called the Bow Street Horse Patrol, its primary role was to police the turnpikes on the approach roads to London, ensuring the safety of horse-drawn coaches and their occupants, protecting them from highwaymen.

The turnpike roads were toll roads set up by an Act of Parliament, authorising trustees to impose tolls on the stretch of road to finance its maintenance. These toll roads were the main routes into the capital in the 18th century and as such were well-used.

When the Metropolitan Police force was formed in September 1829, the Bow Street Horse Patrol was amalgamated into the new organisation as its mounted branch. Today, it has around 110 horses in its service, with stables at several locations including Hyde Park, Great Scotland Yard, Lewisham, Hammersmith and West Hampstead.

Many police forces all over the UK have a mounted branch today. There are 12 mounted units across England, Scotland and Wales including in Lancashire, West Yorkshire and South Wales.

 

What are their training regimes and disciplines?

It can take between six months and two years to fully train a reliable police horse. As well as the normal type of training that any horse being ridden receives, part of the police horses' regime is known as "nuisance training". This is aimed at ensuring they don't panic in a noisy crowd situation.

Training consists of subjecting the horses to people shouting, screaming, banging drums, waving flags and even throwing tennis balls at the horses and riders!

 

What protection or armour does a police horse wear?

Even during training (particularly the "nuisance training"), police horses are protected by full riot gear. This includes a visa attached to their bridle to provide eye protection, well-padded kneepads and boots and a nose-guard that protects the whole front of their face.

 

Lancashire Constabulary has a large mounted branch that is renowned throughout the country for its training approach, which aims to help the horses deal with potential riot situations and fire hazards - each horse wears the equivalent of a "suit of armour", including a head shield and shin pads.

 

What qualities are looked for in a police horse?

A horse's personality is an important component in evaluating whether it will be suitable as a police horse. Studies have shown that horses who are passive and confident are better suited to police work. They also need the capacity to adapt well to the environment in which they live.

Being passive means the horse behaves in a relaxed manner and isn't easily disturbed, while a confident horse behaves in an assured manner and doesn't hesitate. In physical terms, most UK police horses are around 17 hands high or more, although they can be smaller than this. A police horse will normally be four years of age before taking on full duties and will retire between the ages of 18 and 20.

The horses used by the Metropolitan Mounted Police are normally 50% or 75% thoroughbred, mixed with a draught breed. This will give them the agility of a thoroughbred, combined with the size and strength of a draught horse.

Although police horses can be male or female, the majority tend to be geldings. In September 2019, Northumbria Police recruited their first female horse in their 162-year history. The mare, Penelope, was recruited to support frontline officers on patrols, at protests, at large-scale events and football matches.

 

What kind of relationship does a police horse have with its rider?

Each police horse has a close relationship with its rider, operating with mutual trust and understanding. Dealing with a living, breathing creature is vastly different from driving round in a police car or riding a motorbike.

It's not just a case of training the horse, but also training the person too. The officer must have control of the horse in every situation, as well as doing their job. This can make working with police horses a challenge.

Horses can be desensitised to stimuli that would cause a regular untrained horse to bolt. However, without a rider whom they trust completely, even the best-trained police horses can't function properly. Horse and rider are “partners” in every sense of the word.

The rider’s dedication can make all the difference to the horse. There is a stringent procedure before an officer is accepted into the Mounted Branch. They must have at least two years' police service and also some experience with horses. On average, only 20% of applicants are accepted into the Mounted Branch.

Officers are vetted to ensure they're the right type of person, with a temperament and personality to fit into the close-knit team. They must also be in good shape physically to fulfil the rigorous demands of being a mounted officer.

Even in these modern times, police horses continue to play an important role in the force. After they retire, they are put out to pasture to live the rest of their life in peace and tranquillity. Charity the Horse Trust has numerous ex-police horses in its care. Founded in 1886, it's the world's oldest equine charity.

Most retired police horses are adopted to private animal sanctuaries or rescue organisations. Often, their human former partner continues to visit them, as they have become so closely bonded through years of working together.

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