Securing border, an American icon

The Border Patrol, a division of the Department of Homeland Security's Customs and Border Protection service, routinely uses horses on the southern border with Mexico. But the mustangs owned by the Spokane Sector are the first to watch the northern border, said Pinkerton.

The Border Patrol's "Operation Noble Mustang" adopts horses from the US Bureau of Land Management's wild horse and burro program, blending today's technology with yesterday's law enforcement traditions, the agency said.

On a recent day, Richard Graham, agent-in-charge of the Border Patrol station in Oroville, rides along as his agents patrol a small section of the border. The avid horseman sings the praises of mustangs and their ability to patrol the border with minimal environmental damage.

In the valley below, aspen, cottonwoods, and a few pine flank the river that flows from Canada into the United States. Along the river is a Prohibition-era dirt "whisky trail" that shows recent activity from modern smugglers bringing different contraband, most likely potent "B.C. Bud" marijuana, from Canada.

The mustangs' big bones and large hoofs give them a sure-footedness that makes them a perfect fit for scaling the steep hillsides and thick forests along the border, Graham said. They also have less of an impact on the fragile wilderness ground than motorized vehicles, he said.

"These horses are truly American. They are a product that's unique to the United States, and we are putting them in a position to help us protect the US," Pinkerton said. "There's something inherently right in doing that."

The patrol contracts with local ranchers to board and feed the animals. Because they are owned by the government, the agency saves money it used to spend on leasing horses from local ranchers, Pinkerton said.

The mustangs were rounded up in the BLM wild horse adoption program, broken by inmate wranglers at a Colorado prison, then sent to the Border Patrol's Colville station in Washington state for final training.

Graham's station is responsible for an 80-mile stretch of border that includes about 50 miles of the Pasayten Wilderness Area, a 529,477-acre tract where motorized vehicles are prohibited and there are few roads.