Calgary Herald

Local police make hay over new recruit

Ortona joins force as service horse in mounted unit

- JOEL GRIFFITH

The Calgary Police Service is welcoming a new recruit, with 12-year-old Ortona joining the team as a police service horse.

Ortona will fill the void left by the death of Ranger in late 2016.

Trainers say Ortona is a friendly, Percheron-cross gelding with a background in show jumping and eventing.

Robin Koltusky, animal care coordinato­r at the Calgary Police Mounted Unit, said Ortona is originally from the Lethbridge area and was once a young girl’s lesson horse.

“We’re lucky to have him as part of our mounted unit today,” Koltusky said.

Before joining the unit, potential police service horses must go through a three-week trial period in which they’re introduced to different stimuli, including audio and video.

“Ortona’s a very intelligen­t horse,” said Koltusky.

“If he sees something he’s not too sure about, he’s a lot more confident next time around.”

Ortona will also undergo a 30-day training period, which includes obstacle training.

“I need these horses to be beginner friendly and versatile,” said Koltusky.

“Then it’s ongoing training from that point, throughout his career.”

The mounted unit followed its new naming tradition, paying tribute to Canadian veterans, in which new horses are named after historical Canadian battle honours.

Sgt. Kelly Oberg, who is in charge of the mounted unit, said Ortona is the second horse to be named under the newly adopted naming tradition, with 11-yearold Vimy being the first.

Ortona is named for the Battle of Ortona, which took place in Italy during the Second World War. More than 1,300 Canadians were killed during that week of battle in December 1943.

“We feel it’s an appropriat­e way to show respect to the veterans in our country who have fought valiantly for our freedoms,” said Oberg.

Oberg said they look for specific qualities in their service horses in order to ensure they can handle the sometimes tiring, rugged workload, including carrying officers on patrol for up to six hours a day.

“It takes a certain qualified horse, with a certain level of fitness, demeanour and mindset to be able to achieve that,” said Oberg. “The most important piece for us is the temperamen­t and the mindset of the animal.”

Not only can the horses handle the workload, Oberg said they also make the public want to interact more with them and their officers.

“It’s amazing how citizens respond to our members and horses while they’re out on patrol,” said Oberg.

“To me, I think that’s very important, and brings considerab­le value to the organizati­on.”

 ?? RYAN McLEOD ?? Calgary police officer Rob MacLeod and equine recruit Ortona smile for the cameras at the police stables on Tuesday. Ortona, a 12-year-old gelding, is helping to fill a space left by the death of Ranger.
RYAN McLEOD Calgary police officer Rob MacLeod and equine recruit Ortona smile for the cameras at the police stables on Tuesday. Ortona, a 12-year-old gelding, is helping to fill a space left by the death of Ranger.

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