Anything but authentic

John B. Moore, like many others, once thought that New York's carriage industry was a harmless tradition that didn't warrant a second look. Now, he writes on the Central Park Blog, he has been forced "to confront the awful truth" about the industry, reckoning that there is no excuse for making the horses live the way they do--living in squalid cells and working in some of the nation's worst traffic.
Like many of us who have discovered this same awful truth, The Central Park Blogger has been confronted with the industry's PR machinery, which is quite elaborate. Between the paid PR person (Carolyn Daly) and lobbyist Thomas McMahon (whose lone associate in his firm, Jean Kim, is lobbying for the carriage industry), and the unfortunate mix of politics and "oversight," given that McMahon's wife, Linda Gibbs, is the Bloomberg appointee who oversees the Department of Health), you can begin to see how politically entrenched this cash-only industry is. Much effort is devoted to making the horse-drawn carriage industry appear to be an inconsequential diversion. Harmless? That it isn't, because putting horses into traffic endangers the horses as well as the public.

Support a ban on horse-drawn carriages

Tourist attraction, or cruel spectacle?

"We have an impeccable safety record."
--Carolyn Daly, public relations professional hired by the NYC carriage horse industry

A review of the facts is in order. At least six people have been hospitalized and three horses have died from carriage accidents in New York since 2006. From 1994 to 2007, there have been at least 26 accidents, at least two of which were unreported (have there been others?)

A 2007 audit by City Comptroller William C. Thompson acknowledged the disheartening fact that the city had "dropped the ball" with respect to adequate care of New York City's carriage horses. The report also had something to say about poor record-keeping. The problems include lack of water and risks of overheating. In February 2008, Clancy, an 8-year-old Percheron, died in his stall.

The trade does profit on the ignorance of tourists. To what degree, we don't know, because it's a cash-only business. What we do see, however, is that prospective tourists increasingly are forgoing visits to New York City because they don't want to see this inherently abusive industry.

Tourism? Not! Read one visitor's recent comment (HorseWatchNYC post, May 3).

TAKE ACTION: Ask City Council Speaker Christine Quinn to support a ban on horse-drawn carriages. She rules the Council with an iron fist, intimidating colleagues who would support the ban (Intro. 658). She is effectively blocking this legislation, as she has done with all humane legislation pertaining to animal well-being. This includes the pets-in-housing bill.

Ian McKeever

Aye, that's a good laddie. I just like saying his name.
Ian McKeever's stables are looking a little different these days (at least from the outside). I can't quite put my finger on what the transformation is. I'll have to think on that.

The ever-articulate Mr. McKeever is an erstwhile spokesman for the industry, from the days before the golden-tongued Ms. Daly signed on to be a spokeswoman. It could be said that they're cut from the same bolt. In this blethering New York Post article from October 2007, Mr. McKeever calls the activists "extremists" and "idiots." Ms. Daly's word of choice is "extremist." She likes this word a lot.

You know the way that journalists and late-night comics love George W. Bush? I love Ian and Carolyn.

In seriousness, the players are inconsequential except for the horses.
Support Intro. 658, the bill to ban horse-drawn carriages in New York City.

Ice Doesn't Count as Drinking Water

No public water readily available, poor hoof care

The treatment of NYC carriage horses is disgraceful for many reasons, apart from the fundamental danger of putting them into traffic.

Holly Cheever, DVM and renowned equine expert, has inspected the horses at work and in their stables, after which she advised Mayor Bloomberg and the City Council on what she found: a comprehensive and alarming inventory of poor treatment. Notably, she found that the horses were deprived of adequate water and proper hoof care (although Carolyn Daly has made the smarmy quip about their "special" shoes.)

Here is a portion of Holly Cheever's letter about the care of NYC carriages horses:

"During the several years that I inspected New York's carriage horses on the street and in their stables at the request of the ASPCA and the Carriage Horse Action Committee, I noted repeated violations of basic humane equine husbandry and care principles, as follows:

• The horses were not given adequate water during their work shifts since no public water is readily available to them, and most were denied the basic presence of water buckets in their stalls.
• Many horses were afforded inadequate hoof care and shoeing, adding to their likelihood of developing or exacerbating lameness."

Even more recently, the New York City comptroller's audit in September 2007 found similarly distressing problems. The audit specifically noted a lack of drinking water for the horses and said they were forced to stand in their own waste because of inadequate drainage.

Time to ban horse-drawn carriages, as many major cities worldwide have done. Call-in days are coming up on February 19, 20, and 21. During these days, it is critical that you let your City Council representative hear from you. Ask them to support Intro. 658, the bill to ban horse-drawn carriages.

Find your New York City Council Member
Read Holly Cheever's letter to Mayor Bloomberg and the City Council (2006)
Read about the NYC Comptroller's audit of the carriage-horse industry (2007)
Photo used courtesy of The Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages

Short on Fact, Long on Hyperbole

Carolyn Daly is the ever-articulate, slick public relations professional who was hired by the horse-drawn carriage industry, along with two lobbyists for the industry.

When I get discouraged, I think of some of the goofier Carolyn Daly quotes, which are good for belly laugh. Maybe we should borrow a page from her playbook and take to calling people names. Here's my list of "Top 10 Dumb Quotes From Carolyn":

10. The death of Smoothie in September 2007 was "a freak accident."
9. Most New Yorkers are tired "of this small group of animal extremists who just won’t shut up.”
8. The activists are “extremely delusional.”
7. “They continue to have a mean-spirited, negative approach to everything they do.”
6. (Tony) Avella "is the one who should be put out to pasture."
5. We [the industry, its PR executive, and 2 lobbyists) care deeply for each and every one of them." [the horses]
4. "This is just a cheap publicity program he is running on the backs of these horses."*
3. "Calling for a ban on a working-class NYC industry that is 100 years old and highly popular with tourists and New Yorkers and considered 100 percent humane by all licensed animal welfare groups and agencies for a few cheap headlines is the real horse manure."
2. “It’s Valentine’s Day. Go out with your boyfriend. Meet your husband for dinner. Love a horse. But no, not them. They’re outside, as usual, talking to deaf ears.”
And the No. 1 dumbest quote (of the last 3 months) from Carolyn Daly is:
1. “A true Stupid Girl is one who talks publicly about something she knows nothing about. They have specialized shoes for concrete."

*She's right about this (#3). Unlike the horse-drawn carriage industry, we extremely delusional activists don't have the funds to hire fancy public relations people and lobbyists. We just hand out flyers.

The next time your boss proposes something ridiculous, answer back like a fancy PR professional and "trot" out some embarrassing cliches. Say, "That's lot of of horse manure!"

You May Be an Extremist If ...

1) You engage in outrageous behaviors, such as attending peaceful demonstrations!
2) You care about animal protection issues!
3) You participate in civic processes and contact elected city officials with concerns and suggestions
4) You see Valentine's Day as an opportunity to reach tourists with information about the carriage horse industry, which is fundamentally inhumane
5) You were labeled as an extremist by Carolyn Daly, the flack hired by the carriage industry to spin the stories just so!

Photo credit: Hiroko Masuike for The New York Times

So that's what extremists look like!

Read the biased New York Times article (what the hell is going on at the Times?)

Love, Alice

Dear Carolyn Daly,
If you think that childish name-calling is going to change anything, you are in for a wee surprise! How stupid do you think people are? How do you think it looks that the carriage industry has hired two lobbyists and a flack? And yet, we are left in the dark about the death last week of Clancy in his stable on the West Side. The city has forced the ASPCA to file a Freedom of Information Act request to get the veterinary records!!! HOW PATHETIC IS THIS???
Carolyn, were you quoted accurately when you are referred to peaceful demonstrators and activists as "animal extremists who just won’t shut up"? Is that your best flackery? And the kicker: “It’s Valentine’s Day. Go out with your boyfriend. Meet your husband for dinner. Love a horse. But no, not them. They’re outside, as usual, talking to deaf ears.”

Who could make this stuff up?

Expert Opinion - Colic

"Horses with colic may need either medical or surgical treatments. Almost all require some form of medical treatment."--Merck Veterinary Manual, Colic in Horses

A New York City carriage died in its stable on Friday, February 8, and colic is said to be the presumptive cause. Colic is a major cause of death in adult horses, and a cause for ongoing vigilance. David Freeman, a specialist equine veterinarian at the University of Oklahoma, has cautioned that periods of intense exercise followed by periods when the horse is simply standing around--coupled with limits on the horse's access to small and infrequent amounts of water--increase risks of colic as well as heat stroke.

A horse with colic may show symptoms, the most of common of which include pawing repeatedly with a front foot, looking back at the flank region, curling the upper lip and arching the neck, repeatedly raising a rear leg or kicking at the abdomen.

The manifestations of colic--and the clinical evaluation of the extent of the disorder--are extremely complex. Yet the clinical examination is essential, owing partly to the necessity to differentiate colic from acute obstruction. Horses have relatively small stomachs, and they can neither vomit nor regurgitate, according to clinical texts. Caretakers must maintain a high index of suspicion for potentially deadly disorders such as colic. This requires keen insight. (And you've got to like horses, too.)

We are told repeatedly that the New York City horses are well tended, have plenty of water and high-quality food, and lotsa love. We're even supposed to believe that the horses get farm vacations.
Carolyn, was a vet even called? (No, I mean before the horse died in agony). I look forward to hearing your fancy version of this story. Here's a hint: it happened at the Clinton Park Stables on W. 52nd Street.

I have a morbid curiosity, and so I took a stroll along Central Park South today, looking for signs of drinking water. Why don't you do the same? Heck, let's all take a walk and check out the drinking water.

A Rose By Any Other Name...

For Carolyn...

No good deed goes unpunished. The effort to ban horse-drawn carriages on grounds that they are fundamentally inhumane is derided as the devil's work for idle hands. Never mind that this miserable industry endangers the animals as well as the public. The nose-to-tailpipe existence of the horses, the disastrous combination of mixing horses with traffic in the nation's most congested city, and the cumulative ill health effects of working horses in immoderate weather and conditions are well documented.

The good news is that efforts nationwide by humane activists to end the mistreatment of animals are gaining momentum. Larry Copeland of USA Today quotes an animal law specialist as saying there is "an explosion of interest" nationwide in all manner of issues affecting the treatment of animals, from exposing the horrors of puppy mills and dogfighting to the torturous practices that are common in factory farming.

The article leads with a mention of the efforts to ban horse-drawn carriages in New York (the legislation is Intro. 658, sponsored by Councilman Tony Avella). Despite Mr. Copeland's decision to refer to individuals who work on improving the treatment of animals as "animal rights activists," he is right about one thing--the grassroots efforts are making a difference.

From a tactical standpoint, it does not seem a good idea to describe oneself as an "animal rights activist." It plays right into the other side's most beloved tactic--to marginalize all humane efforts by portraying opponents as misguided loners who think all living creatures should having voting rights, or such. But it's not so bad. I sincerely wish all animals could vote. Anyway, Carolyn, and Larry, let's stay on topic, please.

Read "Animal Rights Groups Pick Up Momentum" (USA Today, January 28, 2008)
Make your opinion known. Call NY City Council Speaker Christine Quinn at 212-564-7757 and leave a brief message. Better yet, send her a letter: 224 W. 30th Street, Suite 1206, New York, NY 10001 and ask her to support Intro. 658, and to oppose industry bills Intro. 652 and Intro. 653.

I Always Wanted to Be an Extremist!

"Look, mom, I'm an extremist!" and other musings of a misfit

Carolyn Daly is the public relations wizard who was hired to represent the interests of the horse-drawn carriage industry in New York City. [Note to self: Yikes! She wants to blow my cover and is seeking to educate the public on us bad extremists.]

People protesting the industry "aren't activists, they are extremists," Ms. Daly said in a newspaper interview. [Wow, now that's a pretty sharp flack!] "This is an industry that lives under a microscope," she said. [Pithy proclamation! I wonder if she will try to win our hearts and minds..."]

Maybe the pay raise that Councilman Gennaro has proposed for the horse-drawn carriage drivers can help the association afford the services of Ms. Daly, late of the labor council.

In supporting the important bill proposed by Councilman Avella, I am inspired to borrow a page from Ms. Daly's political playbook and paraphrase a famous campaign slogan: "In your heart, you know he's right." (That's right, the famous line from the Goldwater campaign. To which the industry replies, "In your guts, you know he's nuts." Guffaws all around.) Kudos to the editor for using "Goldwater" and "Daly" together!