EDINBURG, Texas ( Border Report ) — Weighing in at over 1,000 pounds and equipped with night vision, the horses on the Border Patrol’s horse patrol units play an integral part in securing the nation’s border, agency officials tell Border Report.
In the Rio Grande Valley Sector, there are 31 horses — all geldings, and most mustangs — and 30 Border Patrol agents who ride them. Officials say their stealth and swift skills are a force multiplier that help to stop migrants from illegally crossing from Mexico into South Texas, especially at night.
Border Report recently visited the RGV Sector’s horse patrol training academy in Edinburg, and went on a night ride along with Border Patrol agents on horseback where several migrants who were trying to cross the border were apprehended with the help of horses. We saw firsthand why agents vie for this popular detail, who is selected and how they get these horses to work the border.
‘Excellent partners’
“They’re very good partners. In the night they do excellent. They’re able to see. They’re able to identify objects or people coming across before pretty much before agents do,” Border Patrol Supervisory Agent Danny Rios, who has led the horse patrol unit for the RGV for the past few years, told Border Report…