The Montezuma County Sheriff’s Office has named six local elementary school students the winners in its contest to name the three equine members of the county’s Mounted Patrol.
“Thank you to all the elementary students who entered the mounted patrol horse-naming contest,” Cindy Ramsay said in a news release. “Congratulations to each of the winners!”
Each of the winners will receive a photo with the horse they named.
The winners are:
Kiki Ford, of Mancos Elementary School, who named Rebel.Kaitlynn Bain, of Mancos Elementary School, who named Cody.Jeremiah Baker, of Kemper Elementary School, who also named Cody.Nathan Hackett, Jake Nelson and Terriah Lansing, of Mesa Elementary School, who named Charley.The Sheriff’s Office started the contest in May to name the three mustangs that the mounted patrol received through the Bureau of Land Management’s Wild Horse and Burro Program training program at the Centennial Correctional Facility in Cañon City.
The mustangs had 90 days of training in Cañon City, then were given 80 hours of training by Ted Holland, a certified instructor, trainer and a reserve deputy with the Montezuma County Sheriff’s Office.
Each deputy in the Mounted Patrol also completed 40 hours of training with their horse for final certification during a scent detection clinic taught by Ted Nowacki, a certified instructor from Minnesota. The 40-hour class taught the participants how to read their horse’s cues and body language when they search for hidden or lost subjects. The training was the first step to finding lost people, and continued practice will be needed.
All the training was funded by a justice assistance grant that was received last year, Ramsay said.
