wouldnt it be nice if the pigs just stayed in the doughnut shops and didnt bother anybody. Original Article May 8, 12:54 PM EDT Sheriff's unit to use ATVs, horses to patrol wildlands TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) -- A new Pima County Sheriff's Department unit will use four-wheel-drives, mountain bikes and even horses to patrol more than 175,000 acres of parks and open space, including popular recreation areas such as Colossal Cave Mountain Park. The unit, made up of five deputies, a sergeant and a crew of volunteers, will cover county areas formerly covered by park rangers beginning in about a week. Park rangers will focus more on conservation issues. The deputies hope to focus on known problem areas and send the volunteers out to oversee other areas and report new problems, said Deputy Eric Johnson, a 15-year veteran who will be part of the new unit. "We'll be seen a lot more in the busy parks," said Johnson. He said the changes will make law enforcement in parks more efficient. Training for the new unit has been intense. Physical fitness drills included trail running and mountain biking, and members were trained in rappelling and swift-water rescues. Johnson said that with their new skills, deputies will be more involved in search-and-rescue efforts, although the expert, all-volunteer Southern Arizona Search and Rescue will still be needed and used often. The Pima County Sheriff's Posse will also become more permanent. Jerry Simmons, a posse board member and former captain, said about 20 volunteers will make routine patrols on horseback in areas not accessible to all-terrain vehicles and bicycles. "The posse will help bring a presence of the sheriff's department to these outlying areas," he said. The mounted patrols will be in addition to the on-call work the posse now does with the local search and rescue team, Simmons said. He said deputies briefed some volunteers on the worst-case scenarios, such as encountering illegal immigrants, people smugglers and drug traffickers. But they also will help people in distress when they find someone who needs water or first aid. Johnson said that in time, people should see fewer crimes outdoors because of the effort. "Our goal is always to make it safer for the public to enjoy their resource, their county parks," he said.