Los Angeles Mounted Platoon Comes to the Rescue
By Sheila Mears

Chatsworth—Our friend Jody Buciak-Sailor (a San Fernando Ranger’s Sidekick) has 70 horses up at Stoney Point Ranch in Chatsworth. Their numbers were suddenly increased to 120 when horses poured in from Brown's Canyon when the fire reached the canyon this past week. Then the fire jumped the freeway, right near the ranch, and they got the order to evacuate.

"Oh, sh--!" thought poor Jodi, "How do I get 120 horses out?" Mind you, these included brood mares with babies, yearlings and stallions, as well as regular riding horses. The fire chief made a phone call, and along came the LAPD Mounted Platoon with trailers and men to the rescue. The officers got all the horses out and gave Jodi a police escort to locations varying from Pierce College to the temporary stalls at Hansen Dam

. Ranch de Solano volunteered they had spaces for 50 horses. "I have 70," said Jodi. "Bring them all in." She did and the horses were in every nook and cranny and turnout area at the Ranch. She had horses at various backyard stables in Lake View Terrace too. Jodi is now back at home, and yes her home is intact. She has started taking home her animal friends. So a great big vote of thanks and a salute to the Los Angeles Police Department and the Mounted Platoon.

Hundreds of volunteers and equestrians flooded the valleys from Simi to Valencia over this past week working tirelessly to transport horses to safe havens to keep our equestrian friends and their owners out of harm’s way.

The LAPD Mounted Platoon are some of the finest trained equestrians in Los Angeles. Members of the Platoon are shown here at their home base the Ahmanson Equestrian Facility.