Monday, September 1, 2008

Yet another carriage accident


The predictable result of putting horses in traffic
Two horses spooked in Brooklyn on Sunday, causing a wedding carriage to crash and injuring several people. The impact threw the carriage driver onto the windshield of a livery cab, police said. Another man was taken to a hospital, said a fire department spokesman. The carriage was awaiting its passengers when the horses spooked and ran down a busy avenue; the carriage ultimately crashed into a light pole. Police said the reins broke as the driver tried to steer the horses. One of the horses was treated for cuts on the leg.

There are conflicting early accounts of what caused the horses to spook. Regardless of the cause, it is not at all uncommon for these high-strung flight animals to spook and run, often with disastrous consequences to themselves and others. A 1200-pound animal is dangerous when frightened.

Photo credits: Maisel/Daily News
The carriage was licensed to Valentine Carriage. Hey Bridezillas, get real and take a limo! Animal cruelty is not entertainment. Tragedy was averted this time, but this latest accident reinforces that horse-drawn carriages are irrelevant, outdated, and have no place in 21st-century New York City. They endanger the public safety as well as the animals. The ASPCA supports a ban on horse-drawn carriages in New York City.
Read a colorful account on Gothamist
More photos on WNBC.com

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

what happen to the horses?

sorry4myfault said...

We have caring rescuers in the wings for all of these horses. Separate legislation also will ensure this. Furthermore, an alternative business plan under consideration would provide a comparably lucrative industry to replace HDCs.

You may not know, but the NYC carriage horses often wind up at kill auctions--as do racehorses and others. Friends of mine have rescued some of the NYC carriage industry throwaways. To the industry, the horses are mere "parts" to be cast off when they're no longer profitable.

sorry4myfault said...

Just a reminder that threats and menacing remarks will not be published.

sorry4myfault said...

There is nothing in this post to suggest that slaughterhouses are operating in the United States. The last was shut down last year. And the slaughter is far more gruesome in Mexico and Canada (stabbing repeatedly in the spine)than it was in the US (spikes driven into the brain). Do the slaughter auctions still go on? Yes!

Temple Grandin's "Survey of Trucking Practices and Injury to Slaughter Horses" found that most of the carriage horses that were sent to slaughter were bought from Pennsylvania -- home of New Holland Auctions and conveniently close to New York City. The horses at these auctions face an even more gruesome transport and death than they once did--and the carriage industry's disgusting practices do nothing to ease this misery.

Do not assume that we do not have the facts -- we do. We have rescued broken-down NYC carriage horses from New Holland.

If I were you, "Carriage Supporter," I would not bother sending posts to this blog. Your propaganda won't find a home here.