SADDLE UP, JUNO, FOR POLICE DUTY
Const. Rob MacLeod holds the badge earned by Juno, the newest member of the Calgary Police Service’s mounted unit. The eightyear-old gelding recently completed five months of training.
Months of training and hard work have paid off for the newest member of the Calgary police stables.
Juno, a spunky eight-year-old gelding purchased by the police service earlier this summer, has officially completed his training — and in a ceremony on Wednesday was presented with his badge, the last step before becoming a fullfledged member of the city’s fivehorse police horse herd.
“We take great pride in the fact he was successful,” said Sgt. Kelly Oberg, commander of the CPS mounted unit.
“It lends credit to our selection process, and shows the skills and expertise of our employees.”
Prior to graduation, Juno was paired exclusively with civilian CPS horse trainer Robin Koltusky, who accompanied mounted unit officers during routine patrols.
Juno’s five-month training period ended with a gruelling two week ‘final exam’ at the Agrium centre on the Stampede grounds.
Assisted by a trainer from the Toronto Police Service, Juno was put through his paces in everything from daily patrol duties to crowd control — tests Oberg proudly said he passed with flying colours.
Juno’s introduction into the herd came after the loss of Ranger, the police horse that unexpectedly died last November after complications during a routine medical procedure.
As with stablemates Ortona and Vimy, Juno’s name is an homage to the beach where Canadian troops landed during D-Day — a tradition started last year by the CPS mounted unit.
Juno’s previous owners, who live on a ranch near Cochrane, were present during Wednesday’s badge presentation ceremony.
Oberg said once they realized it was the Calgary police interested in purchasing Juno, they offered to waive Juno’s $6,000 price tag and instead donate him outright to the service.
Two years ago, work began on transitioning Calgary’s 40-yearold mounted unit from a ceremonial presence to a full-fledged patrol unit, capable of responding to calls and performing regular patrols throughout the city.
Both Oberg and Koltusky spent that time reshaping and retraining the unit, replacing horses deemed unsuitable for active patrol.
The CPS mounted unit got the chance to prove themselves one evening in August when a fourhorse troop that included Juno managed to chase down and arrest a group of armed offenders suspected of robbing a Forest Lawn grocery store.
Realizing their pursuers were four police horses at full gallop, two of the suspects immediately threw up their hands and surrendered.
The third kept running but, after realizing he wasn’t about to outrun a horse, also chose to give himself up to police.
As for Juno’s success, Oberg is confident the horse will continue to be a standout addition to the unit.
“It’s outstanding to see him succeed,” he said.
“It’s very gratifying to see that.”