Horses That Work

Some of you may know that in NYC, Chicago, St. Louis and in other cities around the country there is a concerted effort by activist organizations to ban the legal right of horse and carriage owners to offer rides to the public. In the case of NYC, the proposed ban is being promoted by the mayor, who proposes to substitute electric cars. There is also a shady connection between the ban proposal and a powerful real estate developer who wants to buy the horse stable properties.  This same developer also created and contributed to his own non-profit group which supported the mayor's campaign and opposed another candidate who would not support eliminating horses from the city. Activist group ASPCA also contributed heavily to the mayor's campaign and reportedly also to the developer's non-profit group, called "NYCLASS." Something stinks in NYC and its not the stables.

The strong whiff of a quid pro quo and alleged campaign irregularities now has the FBI looking at all of this, and one day we may learn the truth. Meanwhile the horse and carriage owners, very small business owners all (The vast majority of the drivers own his/her own horse and carriage - a few hire others to drive for them some of the time.), await their fate at the hands of others, all amid completely unsubstantiated accusations that the horses are ill treated.

Recently I was given the opportunity to tour one of the stables, inspect the horses and take a ride with a driver. My impression was completely positive and afterwards I was equally positive that the horses are extremely well treated and cared for. Yet the activists claim they are not, and the only solution is to ban them from the city. Less obvious, and not as widely known, is the fact that activist organizations such as ASPCA and others generally oppose the use of animals for work regardless of whether they are well cared for or not. It is the idea of doing work for people that in and of itself is considered by them to be ill treatment. It is beyond the scope of this article to go into detail about just how horribly misguided that is, but suffice it to say, I disagree completely

Should that point of view ever prevail then all forms of riding and driving horses would cease and we would see fewer and fewer horses among us. A non-working horse, is a very costly pet indeed, and one that is generally bored and unhappy. Sort of like people in the same predicament. A horse needs a job, a routine and a purpose to have a fulfilling life. Horse people know this, but then, most activists are apparently not horse people.

The human partnership with working animals runs long and deep and the carriage horse remains a touchstone to that past, allowing us to remember a simpler time, when that very partnership was essential to life itself. How fortunate they still are in NYC to have the carriage horses around to help people maintain a connection to their agrarian roots and to mankind's relationship with domestic animals.

Expert equine veterinarians like North Granby's Dr. Harry Werner have also evaluated the NYC horses, and have affirmed the excellent care and husbandry these horses receive. As famously said by the late New York Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, “Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts.” The opponents of carriage horses ought to be reminded of that in their pursuit of an ideology that does not include working animals in most roles in American society.

 Learn more about this issue at:      www.savethenyccarriagehorses.com