The county’s OPP mounted unit is being dismounted.
County council voted on Oct. 31 in support of a police services board recommendation to dismantle the unit, which consists of three horses: Bosco, Jasper and Moose.
The issue was also part of a closed session of council, after which Warden Chris White announced the unit was being disbanded after 11 years of service.
“It wasn’t an easy decision,” said councillor Ray Tout, who is the county representative on the police services board. “People love horses.”
The horses have been a fixture at fall fairs and patrols in many of the urban communities throughout Wellington County.
Tout said the cost to operate the mounted unit is about $250,000 annually, including two officers staffing the unit, a vehicle to transport the horses, lodging and food.
Bosco has been under veterinary care over the past several weeks and is expected to remain under care for an extended period.
“It became quite expensive in the eyes of the [police services board],” Tout said of the decision.
“That’s two officers we can have on the street,” he added, noting the officers will be redeployed. “What’s more important for Wellington County is two officers on the beat.”
The mounted unit is one of the few OPP detachments that provided mounted officers on patrol.
The mounted unit was first tested in 1998, with the Arthur Kinsmen Club purchasing the first horse trailer and the Ontario Standardbred Society donating the horses and providing training.
The horses were first used in an operational capacity at the 2000 International Plowing Match hosted by the county. In October 2003 the county purchased two six-year-old Percheron geldings, Jasper and Bosco. Moose was purchased in 2011.
The unit, Tout said, will be officially disbanded by the end of the year, with the horses being put out to pasture.
