The Arkansas Division of Correction (ADC) will host their 11th Annual Horse Auction, with 25 retired horses available for sale at the Saline County Fairgrounds in Benton. Come preview the horses on Friday, March 11th, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The gates will open at 10 a.m., Saturday, March 12th, with the auction starting at 1 p.m.
The ADC’s horse program utilizes staff and inmate trainers to breed and train horses in support of the department’s security mission. Horses begin their training at age 2 and begin their active service at age 4. The horses are utilized primarily by officers supervising field utility squads, regional maintenance squads, and manhunts.
The ADC’s primary purpose for the auction is to find “Good Homes for Good Horses,” ensuring that the horses can retire with dignity after years of faithful service to the state’s prison system.
One of the horses available this year is “Shawnee,” a 6-year-old gray gelding that has Poco Bueno Haythorn/Hancock breeding and is eligible for registration with the American Quarter Horse Association.
This year’s auction will include a salute to veterans and featuring an empty saddle ceremony in remembrance of ADC K-9 Sgt. Joshua Caudell, who served in the Army National Guard for eight years. Sgt. Caudell, 29, was fatally wounded the morning of February 28th while assisting the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office in Maumelle.
