DuPage forest district delays sale of horses to Schaumburg Park District

DuPage County Forest Preserve officials have delayed the sale of two draft horses to the Schaumburg Park District after residents raised concerns about the deal.

It's now unclear when, or if, a vote will happen.

Forest preserve commissioners in April reviewed the proposal to sell two horses kept at Kline Creek Farm in West Chicago.

If approved, the horses — 16-year-old Darryl and 19-year-old Jack — would be sold for $1 and moved to Volkening Heritage Farm along Plum Grove Road in Schaumburg.

Right now, the horses' daily tasks at Kline Creek include working in the fields, moving equipment and hauling feed. On occasion, they lead wagon rides throughout the district.

Forest preserve officials have said the sale would give Jack and Darryl the opportunity to continue to function as a team and remain active together at Volkening Heritage Farm, a living-history farm much like Kline Creek.

The sale was proposed months after commissioners approved a policy outlining what could happen to horses retiring from Kline Creek and Danada Equestrian Center in Wheaton.

One of the options includes conveyance to an area government or nonprofit group “that shares the ethical stewardship practices of the district.”

But in April, resident Jane Muklewicz opposed the deal with Schaumburg Park District because the forest preserve district hadn't established specific guidelines for its horse adoption policy.

This week, forest preserve Commissioner Jeff Redick confirmed that a vote on the sale has been postponed until the adoption guidelines are in place.

“I'm not saying it's dead. I'm not saying it's pending,” Redick said of the proposed sale. “I just don't know.”

In the meantime, Redick said the district is listening to feedback from the public about how the horse adoption policy should be implemented.

Resident Sue Wedryk of Wheaton this week said she would like to see retired district horses adopted by people who are eager to provide them with care — not park districts or other governmental entities.

“When a police dog retires from service, it doesn't get transferred to another police department so it can stay in public service,” Wedryk said. “It retires from work to a private owner. Why would a district horse not be offered the same opportunity upon retirement from service?”

Muklewicz said the district could simply keep its aging horses and have them serve as ambassadors or use them to educate children.

“There are other uses,” she said. “So they don't have to be shipped out to another public entity.”