4 March 2007 - Vol. # 18
contacting your Council Rep. ***letters
to the editor ***
Lilly O'Reilly update
PLEASE WRITE TO THE
CITY COUNCIL
Guidelines to Writing your Letter
If you have not already done so, please contact the City Council
regarding the carriage horse issue. You may access the
City
Council web site - and by entering your address, find out who
your Council Member is along with their contact information. E-
mails or faxes are preferred since snail mail is delayed due to the
irradiation security process. In addition to your Council Member, it
is also important to write to Speaker Christine Quinn and members of
the Transportation Committee. Please see Horse Sense
newsletter #17 for more information.
Some of you have asked for tips in writing such a letter. The
following guidelines should help you in writing to your Council
Member. You may also check out our web site section
"Why a Ban
is Necessary." Start out by stating why you are writing - such
as "As one of your constituents" , I am writing to ask you to
support legislation that would ban the carriage horse industry in
New York City." Then go on to say why you feel it should be
banned. Include such arguments as traffic/public safety; humane
Issues - i.e. horses work between the shafts of their carriages for
nine hours straight; multi storied stables in warehouse buildings,
which are fire traps; horses are herd animals and are deprived of a
natural life with no opportunity for turn- out; impossible to
adequately enforce the myriad of regulations ? i.e. During the
brutal storm on Valentine's Day, the ASPCA did not send the drivers
back to their stables until the afternoon; the possibility of being
sold at auction for slaughter.
If you live outside NYC, you might consider saying "I am a
tourist from [country/state] who hates the sight of the sad horses
on Central Park South"; that you would never take such a ride;
prefer pedicabs - at least the driver has a choice - the horses do
not; always avoid the area; would never come back because of the sad
carriage horses.
Always end your letter by providing your name, address,
city/state and zip code - or country.
ANOTHER LETTER TO THE
EDITOR
What About the Carriages?
Am-NY - March 2, 2007 Vehicles on city streets should be regulated
and obey traffic rules. The new bill passed by the City Council that
regulates pedicabs requires drivers to have a valid driver's
license. This requirement shows that one has passed the driving test
and is familiar with the rules of the road.
But horse-drawn carriage drivers are not required to have a driver's
license. I have seen them make U- turns on crowded streets, cut
between cars using their horse as a battering ram and talk on cell
phones and/or stand up while driving. Why is one industry favored
over another?--Elizabeth Forel, Manhattan
UPDATE ON LILLY O'REILLY
Former NYC Carriage Horse
Lilly
O'Reilly was a 19 year old mare when she came to
Central New England Equine Rescue
early in 2006. Through the engraved number on her hoof, we were able
to trace her back to one of the NYC stables. They had sent her on to
New Holland Auctions. Lilly was not in good shape. She was a couple
of hundred pounds underweight and had harness sores from ill fitting
tack all over her body - both are evidenced in the photo by
protruding ribs and areas where her hair had rubbed off; she also
had suspensory problems in her hind and her fetlocks were down. It
was very clear she had been overworked.
For a long time, Lilly was very sad and mistrusting of humans. A big
girl ? 18 ? hands high, she was the biggest horse in the rescue
until Teddy came. In June, Vicky of CNEER said ?Lilly still has
not lost that sadness in her eyes. I don?t know how long it will
take but it?s still there - she has moments of interest, but that?s
all - little by slow she will trust us to keep her safe. She has had
a hard life I think ? a very hard life. And how she can still even
tolerate people is beyond me. She can?t be adopted until she is
restored both physically and emotionally.?
But good news for Lilly -- In the fall of 2006, a local
veterinarian named Michaela, fell in love with Lilly and adopted
her. This was Lilly in the fall - much healed.
She now lives with Coal, a quarter horse and Badonkey Donk ? a
rescued donkey - and adores both of them. She is getting lots of
loving attention and is fluorishing. They pose for Michaela's
holiday card.
Michaela talks about her new girl. "Lilly is doing great. She
has come out of her shell like you wouldn't believe--her newest
favorite game is taking everything out of my tack box one item at a
time when I am busy brushing her or picking her feet. I swear that
horse smiles the entire time she does it."
I feel a special affinity for Lilly because she is a New Yorker -
and as a former carriage horse, I know she had a difficult life. She
was one of those horses who had to climb steep ramps in her multi-
storied stable to get to her stall - and she probably never had a
good nights sleep because it was not big enough to allow her to lie
down comfortably. She was a means to a buck and when she was too old
and creaky to work efficiently, she went to auction. I fell in love
with her when I got the chance to meet her last fall. She is a very
sweet and special horse. I am delighted that she finally has a
wonderful, permanent loving home. Thanks to a few key players, Lilly
is one of the rare, lucky ones who went on to a happy life where she
is valued and loved.
Please let's all strive to get rid of
this archaic and inhumane industry wherever it exists. Too many
Lillys, Montys and Teddys never get that chance for happiness.
| Thank you for caring about the horses, Elizabeth
Forel - Coalition for NYC Animals, Inc. for the
Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages |
