‘Tough’ and ‘a teddy bear at heart.’ Lexington police horse, 13, unexpectedly dies

A police horse who was a “fantastic ambassador” for the Lexington Police Department when he met residents died Thursday night at Rood & Riddle Hospital.

Members of the police department’s mounted unit took 13-year-old Finley to Rood & Riddle Hospital on Sunday when he became ill with a high fever and no appetite, according to a Facebook post from Friends of the Lexington Mounted Police.

Finley’s ailment could not be determined, but the team at Rood & Riddle worked “day and night to keep him comfortable in hopes his body would keep fighting,” the post said.

Despite Finley showing some improvement, he died about 9 p.m. Thursday. He is believed to have passed peacefully, the post said.

A necropsy was expected so that police can learn more about Finley’s death.

Finley had been with Lexington Mounted Police since 2013 and worked with two riders, officers Brian King and Ricky Yates. King, who rode him first, said Finley was one of the better street horses the unit has ever had.

“(He) never did anything to endanger me as his rider, even if he got spooked or nervous,” King said. “Finley was a tough horse, but a big teddy bear at heart. I’m grateful to have been able to spend time with him.”

Yates, Finley’s second rider, also mentioned Finley’s softer side in a police news release.

“Finley assumed everyone he met was there to give him a treat,” Yates said. “He had the best hair in the business, too. Finley was a high-maintenance diva some days, but he would give you everything he had every day of his life. He was a true soldier.”

At 1,900 pounds and 18.2 hands tall, Finley was the largest horse in the unit, according to police.

There was no mistaking which of the police horses was Finley because he was around 300 pounds larger than any of the others, Sgt. Joey Eckhardt said.

“Ever since the beginning, he had always been a gentle giant and always eager to please,” said Eckhardt.

Since the mounted unit formed about 1982, just four or five horses have died while members of the unit, according to Eckhardt. Plans for honoring Finley were still being discussed Friday.

“He will be remembered as a staple of what a mounted police horse should be; kind, brave, sweet, gentle and above all, a fantastic ambassador between the police department and all our citizens,” the Friends of the Lexington Mounted Police said in its Facebook post.

To find a new horse, Eckhardt said he will look in the classifieds. It will likely take six months to a year to train a new horse for police duty, he said.

Finley is the second police horse to go to Rood & Riddle this month. On Dec. 4, 17-year-old Yoder was sent to the equine hospital after he got stuck in a utility hole on East Sixth Street.

Yoder did not break any bones and was in the hospital for just a couple of days before being released.

This story was originally published December 21, 2018 at 8:56 AM.