Previously, federal law treated these animals as mere property. As a result, in the eyes of the law, harming them was no worse than throwing a rock through a car window. But that has now changed. Our federal law finally recognizes the need to protect these animals, which play a vital role in protecting our borders, airports, and national parks. Federal agencies mostly use horses and dogs.
Police officers patrol on horseback to effectively control crowds and discourage unruly behavior.
I just saw how effective they can be while I was at the Republican Convention in Philadelphia. National parks use horses to find lost or stranded visitors. Police dogs survey dangerous crime scenes involving drugs, bombs, and other high-risk situations. In fact, drug dealers often target dogs because of their effectiveness in sniffing out drugs. In 1998, a record eight police dogs were killed in the line of duty, according to the U.S. Police Canine Association.