Cops, firefighters learn how to handle horses in emergencies
As a new hire with the Barrington Police Department, officer Brian Hansen never expected to be handling horses. On Wednesday, he found himself learning not only to halter a chestnut mare but how to blindfold her in case of a barn fire.
It was all part of a horse safety and rescue clinic hosted by the Hooved Animal Rescue & Protection Society and the Riding Club of Barrington Hills.
"This is really valuable," Hansen said. "I wouldn't think you'd be able to find this kind of training anywhere else."
More than 40 officers turned out Tuesday and Wednesday for the unusual sessions, held in a private Barrington Hills barn. They included police and firefighters from Barrington, Barrington Hills and the Barrington Countryside Fire Protection District.
Donna Ewing, founder of the Hooved Animal Society, created the training course four years ago after realizing some of the first responders working in the heart of horse country had never been around horses.
"In this area, horses can break out and get loose," Ewing said. "The police didn't have a clue how to approach them or what to do to capture one that was running down the street."
Officers shed their vehicles at the curb and walked into a different world. Trainers wearing riding boots and jeans introduced them to nearly one dozen horses - a pair of miniature horses, a Shetland pony, full size quarter horses and an Irish sport horse.
All but one are rescues from around Cook and Lake counties, and some of the newer arrivals were skittish when put through the paces during the clinic.
The Riding Club of Barrington Hills estimates there are 600 to 800 horses in at least 250 barns in the greater Barrington area.
"We just wanted to make officers confident in working with horses," said Jason Bitton, executive director of the rescue society. "It's hands-on training designed to break down fears."
Officers and firefighters practiced haltering a horse and guiding it to safety. They took turns leading horses through an obstacle course deliberately designed to challenge them. They learned how to capture a horse running at large and what to do if horses are inside a burning barn.
Obstacles included a field of balloons, which many horses feared. They had to cross a pair of low jumps and onto a plastic tarp, which made noise and moved as the horses walked across it.
"You need to stay calm and show leadership," said Ronda Griffin, head trainer with the Hooved Animal Society, who led the session. "Horses are a lot like dogs. You lead and they will follow."
Barrington Countryside firefighter Dan Murphy was paired with "Cowboy," a Shetland pony described by trainers as "high strung" - noticeable when the novice tried to apply his halter.
"This guy's a little feisty, but I'm not afraid," Murphy said. "This is good training. There are a lot of horses around here."
Another Barrington Countryside firefighter, Sean Hurt, conceded he had not been around horses since he was a teenager. On Wednesday he learned to work with the largest horse on hand, a gray Irish sporting horse.
"If we need to respond to a call where someone has fallen off a horse, we need to know how to deal with them," Hurt said.
Part of the mission of the Hooved Animal Rescue & Protection Society is education about horses, members said, and the clinic furthered that goal.
"After horses break out, they can be scared or even injured," Britton added. "We're trying to simulate a more active environment, which puts (the horses and the officers) to the test."