From Sheriff’s Posse to Service
Big Money Duke started his journey as a mounted patrol horse, which prepared him for the journey to the reserve 2024 AQHA-PATH Intl. Equine-Assisted Services Horse of the Year Award.
A heart for service comes in all shapes and sizes; with Blaze, his comes in a 16-hand-tall package. (Photo courtesy of The Arc Caddo-Bossier and AQHA)
By Calli Montague for AQHA
Big Money Duke has spent his entire life serving others. “Blaze” was the 2024 reserve AQHA-PATH Intl. Equine-Assisted Services Horse of the Year, determined through a selection process by AQHA and PATH Intl. This award highlights the horses who, no matter their background, have found their forever home in the world of equine-assisted services. Blaze’s center, The Arc Caddo-Bossier’s GREAT program, received $5,000, a trophy and banner for this recognition and was recognized at the 2025 AQHA Convention in late March.
Blaze is a 1996 red roan American Quarter Horse gelding by Whitewater Duke and out of Osage Driftwood by Bluechip Driftwood. He has been an equine-assisted service horse for the past 14 years and served on the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Posse for 10 years prior to that. An award-winning companion, Blaze spends his days at The Arc Caddo-Bossier’s GREAT program in Greenwood, Louisiana.
All images courtesy of AQHA.
Here is Blaze’s story:
A heart for service comes in all shapes and sizes; with Blaze, his comes in a 16-hand-tall package. The “gentle giant” started at age 4 as a mounted patrol horse for Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office. While there, he attended many large celebrations, including Mardi Gras parades and the Louisiana State Fair. Ten years later, Blaze was leased to The Arc Caddo-Bossier and the rest is history.
To be an equine-assisted service horse, there is extensive training that each horse must go through. This includes being trained for all types of situations, such as standing still for the wheelchair lift and being able to adapt for every type of person they may encounter. But with Blaze’s experience on the police force, he handled all of it with ease. All the hustle and bustle of the parades and fairs made him immune to the things that may scare other horses, further proving that Blaze was destined to be a service horse.
He can be trusted to walk quietly and calmly at halter, never being pushy, while also giving his independent riders full control. His most valuable working trait, according to his handlers, is his functionality with the lift. The lift is used for those who are either in a wheelchair or have difficulty mounting a horse to be lowered down onto the saddle. It is a loud and sometimes scary procedure for horses, with plenty of moving parts and noises to spook at. But Blaze, a trained soldier in the world of spooks and sounds, handles it with ease. He waits patiently as his rider is lowered into the saddle and is ready to respond when asked to walk on. His demeanor gives people a sense of freedom, pride and confidence that goes with them long after they leave his side.
Blaze is loved by all who encounter him. Gay, a rider with Guillain-Barré Syndrome, has regained her sense of self control from riding Blaze. Her life was flipped upside down when she was diagnosed with the autoimmune disorder; she went from completely independent to relying completely on others for care, spending seven months in the hospital. However, there is no better care to be given than that from a horse who truly loves their people. Blaze waits for the lift to lower Gay onto his back and away they go, shooting her confidence through the roof. Self-confidence often comes from doing the hard things in life, the things no one expects us to do; that is exactly the kind of feeling Blaze gives Gay when he has her aboard.
Hard work and dedication are always worthy of recognition. In 2024, Blaze received recognition for the work he has done with the GREAT program when he was named the 2024 Louisiana Service Animal of the Year from the Governor of Louisiana’s Outstanding Leadership in Disabilities awards. This award recognizes an animal who has shown exceptional assistance to the disabled community. Throughout his entire life, Blaze has been serving his community in one way or another.
Reliable, trustworthy, courteous, enormous heart; all these words could be listed in the dictionary with a picture of Blaze to define them. It is rare to find a horse that truly enjoys what we ask them to do every day. But with him, it is inevitable: he serves all with his heart of gold. From the parade police to partner for life, Blaze will always get the call.
