VIEW ORIGINAL
FORT SILL, Oklahoma (Oct. 22, 2020) -- Weathering persistent 30 mile-per-hour wind gusts out of the north that blew his long mane back and away from his face, Sonny, a recent Fort Sill Artillery Half Section equine acquisition, made his official media debut the morning of Oct. 15 at the Half Section stables on post.
The process of acquiring a new horse such as Sonny is inevitably prompted by a Half Section horse either becoming injured or upon approaching his retirement age, according to Section Chief Gerald Stuck. Two of the Half Section horses are in their early 30s now, he noted.
As the installation’s special ceremonial unit responsible for carrying on the traditions of horse-drawn artillery from the World War I era, the Half Section participates in more than 140 events each year.
Exclusive club
As circumstances warrant the addition of a horse, Stuck makes that selection only after carefully reviewing a 1935 cavalry remount manual and meticulously studying vintage 75-year-old photographs.
That 1935 cavalry manual specifies the horse’s size, age, color, and temperament, said Stuck.
A candidate under Stuck’s consideration has to be between 15 and 16 hands tall, range in age from 7 to 12 years, and be bay (brown) in color with black points on the mane, tail, ear edges, and lower legs.
A horse’s height is measured in 4-inch increments, the width of a hand, from the ground to the animal’s withers. A horse whose height is 15 hands stands 5 feet tall at the withers.
Also as per the manual, each equine Half Section candidate has to have medium bone structure and be gelded (castrated), saddle broke, and gentle.
Standing 15 hands (5 feet) tall at the withers, Sonny is a 12-year-old dark bay gelding with black points and a medium bone structure. He was purchased from Davis Farms in Marlow.
Early on, Stuck deemed Sonny a pretty gentle animal with a really good head, but has recently noted that his fledgling Half Section horse-in-training “doesn’t neck rein real well, but we’re working on that.”
The addition of Sonny in August brought the Half Section herd count to 11, one short of the dozen authorized on his property book, said Stuck.
Immediately upon his arrival on post, each new animal is quarantined from the rest of the herd for 21 days.
This three-week quarantine has long been an established practice at Fort Sill, and is implemented to make sure there are no infectious horse diseases which might be spread to the rest of the herd.
Following his release from quarantine, Sonny was “kept in a separate pasture for a week or two” where he could see and smell — but not touch — the other horses, said Stuck.
Since then, Sonny has gradually been introduced into the established Half Section herd and has grown quite comfortable around Dubia, the horse named in honor of past Fort Sill Commanding General Maj. Gen. John Dubia.
“It can take five years for a horse to get broken in as part of the team in harness,” Stuck explained.
Extensive training
Before last week’s introduction to the media, Sonny had “been under the saddle for about three weeks and had then undergone about a week of getting used to the harness being put on and taken off him,” said Stuck.
Sonny’s typical day begins with his morning feed at 7:30. An hour later, in harness, he is tied at the rail where his coat is brushed down, his mane and tail untangled, and his hooves cleaned and gently picked free of stones.
“We have farriers that come in to take care of the horses’ shoes and hooves,” Stuck noted.
Sonny is then escorted to the round pen for ground work and riding. At this point in his acclimation to the Half Section, Sonny spends half his time being ridden, and the other half in pasture.
Sonny’s incremental introduction to Fort Sill’s slate of official ceremonies these past several weeks has featured his participation in staff or trail rides, as well as in mounted Half Section land navigation exercises; and serving as a single mount during one official ceremony’s rehearsal.
The mounted land navigation exercise pitted two Half Section teams one against the other, as they each sought five points scattered across the installation, bracketed by such distant historical landmarks as Geronimo’s grave and Medicine Bluffs.
This sort of controlled exercise exposes Sonny to unfamiliar roads and to the everchanging ebb and flow — and noise — of vehicular traffic, while in the secure and familiar company of half his herd.
Practice, practice, perfect practice
Sonny’s participation in ceremony rehearsals further acclimates him to the initially startling — from his perspective — myriad sounds and movement of people in crowds, the snap and motion of brightly colored guidons and flags, the music and marching of the band, and Soldier formations on a parade field.
When Stuck deems him ready, Sonny will be “ponied next to another horse in harness,” with that pair most likely making up the swing team. The Half Section consists of three teams of horses harnessed together: the lead team is in the front, the swing team is in the middle, and the wheel team is located closest to the caisson, at the rear.
Adhering to traditions of a bygone era, all six of these harnessed horses are saddled, but only those positioned to the left have mounted riders. In early horse-drawn artillery units, one horse from each team was mounted and carried a rider, while each team’s riderless animal carried provisions for the Soldiers and feed for the horses.
Stuck is more than pleased with the progress of his latest mount, saying, “He is going to make a great Half Section horse.”
While off-post events serve to strengthen local and area community ties, many have also proven a boon to Army recruiting efforts at high schools in the region, on both sides of the Red River. “Everyone loves horses,” said Stuck. “They’re a great recruiting draw.”
Several of the more notable venues for the Artillery Half Section have included the Lawton Rangers Rodeo; National Cavalry Competitions at Fort Reno, Oklahoma; Cheyenne (Wyoming) Frontier Days; EquestFest demonstrations at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center, Burbank; and marching in the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California.
Namesakes
Upon passing muster, Sonny may well experience another Artillery Half Section tradition — the honor of having bestowed upon him the name of a former Fort Sill commanding general.
Artillery Half Section horses stabled today which have been so honored are those named after Fort Sill commanders (sequenced here from the post’s earliest to most recent) Generals Fred Marty, John Dubia, Lee Baxter, David Valcourt, Peter Vangjel, David Halverson, Mark McDonald, John Rossi, Brian McKiernan, and Wilson Shoffner.
Horse-mounted units
Fort Sill holds the distinction of being one of eight active-duty Army installations that has a horse-mounted unit, said Stuck.
The 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment “Old Guard” Caisson Platoon at Fort Myer, Virginia, with duties at Arlington National Cemetery, has been in existence since 1948, and is the only horse-mounted unit senior to the Artillery Half Section, which was established 15 years later, in 1963.
Following on the Half Section’s heels are the Mounted Color Guard at Fort Carson, Colorado (1965); the 1st Cavalry Division’s Horse Cavalry Detachment at Fort Hood, Texas (1972); B Troop, 4th Regiment, U.S. Cavalry (Memorial) at Fort Huachuca, Arizona (1973); the Commanding General’s Mounted Color Guard at Fort Riley, Kansas (1992); the Caisson Platoon at Fort Sam Houston, Texas (shortly after Sept. 11, 2001); and the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment’s Horse Detachment at Fort Irwin, California (2004).
Social Sharing