- Denver Police Department’s mounted patrol unit is Colorado’s only full-time police horse team, delivering high-visibility patrol downtown and at major events
- The six-member crew — one sergeant, four mounted patrol officers and a civilian stable master — partners with five police horses (Maximus, Maverick, Ollie, Orei and Wylie) trained for crowd management
- Mounted police horses boost public safety and community engagement at the 16th Street Mall, Civic Center Park, parades and neighborhood gatherings
- Funded mainly by community donations through the Denver Police Foundation, the police horse program showcases strong local support for mounted patrol
Mounted patrol is one of the most recognizable roles in law enforcement, but it’s also one of the most physically and mentally demanding. Denver Police Department officer Emily Herbst, a 17-year law enforcement veteran with four years in Denver PD’s Mounted Patrol Unit, knows that better than most.
Alongside her partner Maximus — a 16-year-old, 16.2-hand appendix gelding — she patrols the city streets, responds to disturbances and connects with the community in ways few other assignments allow. From barn chores to crowd control, she shares the challenges, responsibilities and moments that make mounted police work one of the most unique assignments in law enforcement.
What does a typical day in your role as a mounted patrol officer look like?
It starts with morning chores at the barn. That includes sweeping out the stalls, getting them clean, making sure the barn is clean for the day, giving all the police horses fresh water, and feeding them their morning grain, vitamins, supplements and hay. The horses then have some time to eat.
After that, we start getting them ready for the day — getting them out, working them, lunging them in the round pen. We may ride them a little, depending on the day. Then we groom them, clean them up, tack them up and get them ready to go. Once they’re set, we get into uniform and we’re ready to head out.
A typical day might involve going out on patrol or we might have a community or department event. It just depends on the calendar. On patrol days, we cover the city. We’re downtown in the business district a lot, but we try to get to as many parks and neighborhoods as possible — anywhere visibility is needed.
Once we’re done for the day — whether it’s an event or patrol — we head back to the barn and do everything in reverse. We untack the police horses, put their gear away, clean them up, put them away for the evening and do our afternoon chores. That includes mucking the runs, feeding afternoon grain and supplements, giving them their evening hay and making sure they have fresh water. Then we’re typically done and might have a little time at the end of the day to catch up on other department obligations.
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What challenges do you face as a mounted patrol officer?
One of the biggest challenges we face is just the dynamic of using horses in police work. We’re asking these police horses to do things and be in situations that are extremely unnatural for them. We expect them to be comfortable in loud crowds of people, to operate in traffic and to maintain composure with all sorts of loud noises going on around them. That dynamic — asking these animals to do things that are unnatural for them — is really the biggest challenge.
The way we mitigate that is with continuous police horse training, primarily focused on desensitization and exposure. We pair that with positive reinforcement so that when they’re exposed to these things, they learn nothing bad is happening to them. Through that police horse training, each rider forms a very special bond with their police horse, and that trust between the horse and the rider is crucial to doing this job effectively.
Can you share a memorable experience that highlights your impact as a mounted patrol officer?
Every single day on mounted patrol is memorable and special in its own way. But some of my favorite interactions are when community members come up to us and say they’ve never interacted with a horse — they’ve never even seen one in real life. It’s fun because we’re in the middle of a city and these people are meeting and petting horses for the very first time. Mounted patrol provides a unique opportunity for those kinds of interactions that wouldn’t otherwise happen. We’re often approached by people who might not typically speak with the police, and the police horses are fantastic at breaking down those barriers between the community and officers.
In this exclusive interview, Officer Emily Herbst shares what it’s really like to serve on Denver Police Department’s Mounted Patrol Unit. From early mornings at the barn to navigating city crowds on horseback, she opens up about the daily demands of the role, the challenges unique to mounted patrol and the advice she offers to anyone looking to follow in her steps.
What unique skills or tools are essential for success in your position?
There are quite a few unique skills expected of us as mounted patrol officers. We’re required to do far more than traditional police work. We need the knowledge and skill set to care for our police horses and maintain their health and fitness for duty. But you also have to be willing to do the dirty work around the barn and that’s not for everybody.
We have to be skilled riders with the ability to maintain control under pressure. We’re expected to manage 1,200-plus-pound animals in chaotic situations, while also staying aware of everything else around us.
Another skill that people might not always consider is approachability. It’s extremely important that officers in this unit are approachable. A large part of what we do — even on a standard patrol day — is interacting with the community in a positive way. We’re answering questions, letting people interact with and pet our police horses. That professionalism and approachability are crucial. I think of our unit as the department’s approachable ambassadors and it’s an impactful responsibility that we share as a team.
|RELATED: Bond between officers and horses in Chicago PD’s Mounted Patrol Unit is built on trust and training
What are the most rewarding aspects of your job?
Aside from having that special, impactful responsibility of bridging the gap between the community and law enforcement — and seeing kids and adults alike light up when they see the police horses — probably the most personally rewarding part of this job is the bond you build with your partner horse. It becomes much more than teamwork. It’s loyalty, intuition, and mutual respect between you and your horse. And when things just click between you and that horse, it’s something special. I’ve yet to find another aspect of teamwork in police work that holds quite that same level of uniqueness.
In the video below, meet Maximus, Maverick and Bronco, the horses on Denver Police Department’s Mounted Patrol Unit.
What advice would you give someone interested in pursuing a role as a mounted patrol officer?
It’s a big mindset shift. You have to enter it knowing it’s going to be one of the most rewarding and unique assignments you could possibly have, but it’s also extremely challenging. Mounted patrol work takes real commitment. It’s a big responsibility. You have to love the animal side of the job just as much as the police work side. Horses aren’t just tools for police work. They’re our partners. We’re responsible for their health, their well-being and their fitness for duty.
It’s important to understand that these are animals, sentient creatures, and we have to take care of them and maintain their longevity so they can do the job effectively for as long as possible. You also need to be prepared for constant, ongoing training — not just for yourself, but for your police horse. If you let the police horse training slide, it’s going to show in the performance of both you and your horse.
And lastly, one of the most important things to remember coming into mounted patrol is that you’re representing your department in a very visible way. It’s extremely important to maintain professionalism, be approachable, be friendly and be willing to engage with the community in a way that’s not typical of standard patrol. If you put in the work, mounted patrol can be the most rewarding assignment you’ll ever experience.
