TREATMENT OF CARRIAGE HORSES IS A BLIGHT ON NEW YORK’S IMAGE
Letters to editor – NY Times April 19,
1989 --- Holly Cheever, DVM, Voorheesville, NY
To the Editor:
My eye could not help being caught by “Proper
Care is Given to Every Carriage Horse in New York City” by Henry M. Rogers
(letter, April 17), since I know that nothing could be farther from the truth.
Mr. Rogers is worth every penny Charteau Stables pays him to promote its image.
I have been working with the Carriage Horse
Action Committee and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals since last December as their expert veterinary consultant. I have seen
abuses in the horses’ stabling and working conditions that greatly exceeded my
jaundiced expectations – jaundiced because I have followed mistreatment of these
animals in animal welfare publications for years and have been astounded that
the city makes no apparent effort to eliminate or improve this horrendous blight
to its image.
My credentials include a bachelor’s degree from
Harvard University, a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the New York
State College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell, and I combine a lifetime of
equine experience with veterinary practice, including track, show, pleasure and
draft horses. I have inspected all six stables housing the carriage horses and
examined the horses in harness in front of the Plaza. The following is what I
have seen and reported to the ASPCA, Mayor Edward I. Koch and key City Council
people.
The majority of the horses area housed in unsafe,
unhealthy and inhumane conditions. Most of the stables are firetraps, housing
horses on second and third floors, in stalls too narrow for their occupants and
on pitted floors that permit pooling of urine and manure. Stall cleaning and
bedding seem nonexistent, ventilation and light are grossly inadequate, and
access to water is rare, contributing to the dehydration and heatstroke suffered
by Whitey last summer.
Many of the animals are filthy, ungroomed and
underfed. Their health is often impaired by age, poor care and a legacy of
injuries as “breakdowns” from the racetrack or Amish farming communities. With
few exceptions, they are driven by individuals who show little knowledge of
equine health, soundness, proper care or harnessing (not to mention manners).
The horses work as many as 70 hours a week in extremes of temperature and
hazardous conditions, often without sufficient water or veterinary care. As for
the few drivers who seemed courteous and knowledgeable, I applaud their concern
and hope they will form the core of an upgraded carriage-horse trade in which
the animals are given protection and respect.
I can say that Helene G. Goldberg gives an
accurate description of the carriage-horse industry (letter March 27) while Mr.
Rogers shows abysmal ignorance of equine matters (where does he get his
information on feral horses?) or an intentional effort to cover up animal abuse.
I appeal to New Yorkers to back the work done by the overextended animal
protection agencies by urging their legislators to support the proposed carriage
horse legislation (Intro 1038) in the City Council. Please save these animals
from lives of abuse.
Holly Cheever, Voorheesville, NY
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