EMERGENCY! NYC carriage horse just collapsed on ice in Central Park with passengers inside and...

[demmiblue]

EMERGENCY! NYC carriage horse just collapsed on ice in Central Park with passengers inside and carriage driver spokesperson @CarriageCavalry put the passengers BACK in the carriage + CONTINUED the ride after the collapse! We have video. @NYCMayor @JustinBrannan @nycHealthy

Link to tweet

For fucks sake, ban this already.

[In_The_Wind]

1. Give the horses a break!

[peacebuzzard]

2. abuse like this was the foundation of the Humane Society.

where are they now?
this sucks. wtf. heartbreaking.

[mopinko]

3. this shit is on the owners.

my eldest used to drive in downtown chi. they belong in the parks, not the streets.
but the owners of these things abuse the drivers more than the horses.

she never made squat. she got a cut and tips. no pay for getting ready, or putting the horse and carriage up at the end of the shift. spent a small fortune not just on her clothes, but had to biyy her own tack. she thought she would make money at xmas time, but they put every nag that could walk and every carriage that rolled out, so, no more rides than any other time.

the horses were happy. they love to work and were always eager to get to it.
and the drivers all did it for love of horses. they spoiled them.

the owners, tho. greedy, lazy fuckers.

[demmiblue]

6. Oh, please.

"...the owners of these things abuse the drivers more than the horses."

There are not enough eyerolls for this garbage.

[mopinko]

10. all i can say is- i was there.

[SophieJean]

29. That's your opinion,

and there is zero proof. Anecdotal, and has nothing at all to do with this particular case of animal abuse.

[stopdiggin]

12. any stable I've been around

was pretty fussy about the care and health of their animals. Of course, I have no knowledge of this particular animal, owner, or incident.

(just because 95% of breeders love their dogs doesn't mean there aren't puppy mills ...)

[mopinko]

40. i was in the chi stable many times.

they invested in the horses. drivers, just no.

they rotated the horses to their farm in indiana on the regular.
the company gave them what they needed and the drivers, mostly, spoiled them.

horses, like dogs, are happiest when they have work. but ppl put their emotions on the horses.
it was the worst part of the job- people calling them names and accusing them of cruelty.

[Codeine]

11. Codswallop. nt

[Butterflylady]

4. Heartbreaking.

[liberal_mama]

5. This is disgusting! What kind of a person would take a carriage ride?

This has happened before with the horses collapsing in the streets.

[Beaverhausen]

7. I'm surprised this is still legal

This is cruelty plain and simple. Wish people would stop doing this

[brooklynite]

8. Another failing by Bill De Blasio...

[vercetti2021]

9. I don't give a fuck what anybody says

This shit is straight up animal abuse. Just walk you lazy fuckers

[Codeine]

14. This. A thousand times this. nt

[SammyWinstonJack]

16. +1000000!

[Codeine]

13. Monstrousness.

Why on Earth is this shit deemed acceptable in the 21st fucking century?!

“tHe HoRsEs LoVe It!” Oh bullshit! They’d love standing in a nice sunny field munching alfalfa quite a bit more that pulling a cart on a freezing city street surrounded by cars. You can tell they love it from the way they collapse on the street!

Absolute fucking horrorshow.

[Drahthaardogs]

44. Well, I don't know about pulling a cart

But I know horses LOVE to work cattle just like the dogs do. I grew up on a ranch, and yes, some animals like having a job to do. I imagine it’s like kids playing sports to them.

[jeffreyi]

15. Having just put my much beloved, and well cared for mare down

This hurts my heart.

[demmiblue]

20. I'm sorry for your loss.

Letting go is so very hard.

[niyad]

24. I am so very sorry for your loss.

[zentrum]

17. DeBlasio wanted to ban this.

But now he's a lame duck.

[melman]

18. They should have banned this shit years ago

[cwydro]

19. What passengers would continue?

Just wow.

[Bayard]

21. Need more facts

First, you don't take a horse out on ice for many reasons. That's just nuts, even if they're wearing studs. And I don't see how that whole group in the photo didn't crash through the ice.

Can't tell if the horse is seriously underweight, but if it is, and its cold, that's just stupid. And amoral. It looks like it just laid down, instead of slipping. I would blame the owner, more than the driver, although he should know better too. So we don't know if it was sick too skinny, or too old.

Giving the passengers the benefit of the doubt, they probably didn't know what they were looking at. I'm surprised they got the horse back on its feet. Authorities definitely should have been called.

Carriage rides aren't inherently bad, but there has to be strict regulations and inspections. That is something the Amish horses here don't get. We have a high Amish population in southern KY. I've seen the horses being driven up a steep hill on a 90 degree day with a loaded carriage, and in the dark with just a small light. There are collisions. You certainly don't see any fat ones. I've heard eye-witness accounts of how they are trained, and its not happy. The horses are looked at as tools, the same way they look at their livestock guardian dogs.

[bullwinkle428]

25. Aren't the Amish deeply involved in the puppy-mill business? That pretty much tells me

all I need to know about their respect for animals.

[Codeine]

27. They're really horrible to animals.

They aren’t concerned with their comfort or welfare beyond that which is necessary to keep them alive. Amish puppy mills are a nightmare.

[leftyladyfrommo]

43. Yes. The Amish are terrible puppy millers.

And they don't take care of their other animals.

I lost all respect for them.

[jaxexpat]

32. Do they still pull trailers loaded with logs behind a PTO driven tractor on the highway?

I saw that once near Trenton. Lots of black smoke.

Bought a bred sow from an Amish guy once. Paid top dollar. She was deaf, squashed all her piglets. Amish and honest don't necessarily rhyme.

[hamsterjill]

22. What kind of assholes would get back in even if they were allowed?

Good grief. Where has compassion gone? This shit needs to stop. No more bullshit. Horses don’t deserve this and the rest of us should not have to be hurt by it.

[Codeine]

23. There's a certain kind of person

who simply cannot accept that animals do not exist merely for their pleasure and service.

[hamsterjill]

36. Well, let someone take those types out in the snow for a long, forced walk hauling something.

I rescue animals. I deal with idiots in Texas all the time who chain their dogs outside in the cold with no food or water and no shelter. Their excuse is almost always “I didn’t know”. Complete bullshit. They should be tied to a tree for even an hour in the cold or Texas heat. Then...maybe they’d get the idea.

I really think an excuse of “not knowing” is just an admission of not giving a damn about other living creatures, and you can many times extrapolate that to their concern (or lack there of!) for humans, too.

[byronius]

26. The Dead Inside are everywhere. Compassion and empathy are learned traits, and no one taught them.

[TheRickles]

33. I think compassion and empathy are innate in humans

But they can be trained out of people by fear, abuse, neglect, cruelty, prejudice, etc. and etc. I'd like to think the Dead Inside can be re-trained, but I'm not so sure anymore.

[hamsterjill]

38. Perhaps. But they need a tough lesson.

As stated up-post, I do animal rescue. I see the same idiots who refuse to spay/neuter dropping off puppies and kittens at the pound over and over and over. Many of those puppies and kittens don’t make it out simply because there aren’t enough homes, and many are euthanized.

I think these types of people should have to be the ones to push the plunger on the euthanasia drugs just one time and see what they are causing. Maybe they would change their minds and teach them something.

It’s just an excuse to lack empathy and compassion.

[Dakota Flint]

28. My Dad

My dad farmed with horses for years. He pampered them and treated them like the treasures they were. He would have beaten the shit out of these cruel idiots.

[Rhiannon12866]

30. There has been a movement to prohibit this abuse since I first joined DU

That was in January of 2003.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

31. Fucking asshole owner! Scumbag!

I HATE cruelty to animals

[Traildogbob]

34. Weight limit!

If you are a fat ass, take a walk. Don’t expect an animal to haul your lazy ass. America is obese. Lay off the triple, quarter pound burger with Bacon, extra cheese, onion rings and blue cheese. For fucks sake, thyroid gland my ass. Half the world is starving, but AmurKKKa gotta have extra bacon on cheese cake.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

41. 👏🏽

[PatrickforO]

35. I really hate cruelty to animals. This is a huge issue, not confined to animals like this horse.

We throw away cats and dogs - every 'kill' type shelter has a walk-in freezer where they keep the euthanized corpses pending cremation.

And in terms of industrial agriculture, all you have to do is tour a beef 'grower' or poultry farm to see the utter inhuman cruelty to which we subject these animals.

While vegans and PETA do have some very compelling points, I have no objection to eating meat, but eating a piece of meat from an animal who spent its life in agony is a horror. Perhaps we would be well served by imposing some much needed regulation on this industry, not only for our sake, but for the sake of the animals. Time to put life before profits for a change.

[Duppers]

37. +100. Well said.

TY!

[BlancheSplanchnik]

42. Yes

😪

[StarryNite]

39. This needs to be banned along with horse racing and anything else that exploits animals causing them

harm and death.

[Codeine]

45. Horse racing is an abomination.

Horses dying left and right for that shit, all so people can bet. Fucking sick.