News & Announcements
Melissa - January 30, 2009
Good
afternoon. Good afternoon. My name Melissa and I am here to
testify in support of Council Member Avella's bill – Intro 658 to ban
the carriage trade.
Last week, we read about a
horse spooking at the inauguration parade. Today, I've learned of
another horse spooking accident last week—in Charleston, South Carolina.
What spooked this latest horse? A PUDDLE OF WATER, according to the Charleston carriage driver. No one was injured in this accident, but a driver at the same company WAS injured in a spooking accident last fall.
There is nothing unusual about news reports that describe carriage accidents that followed spooking accidents.
They are, in fact, predictable—because no horse is unspookable.
Having carriage horses in the middle New York City is inhumane, dangerous, and incomprehensible.
We learned from the 2007 city audit of the industry that city agencies have "dropped the ball" with respect to oversight … on such fundamental matters such as veterinary inspections, drinking water, and record-keeping.
Since that report came out, little, if anything has changed.
The audit, and the ongoing "business as usual" attitude, is disturbing.
It raises troublesome questions about why this CASH-ONLY industry is allowed to continue operating without meaningful oversight.
It makes us wonder whether the city is concerned about the public safety.
It displays a corporate lack of compassion for the animals—surely not a tourism message that is worthy of a world-class metropolis.
It endorses a disrespectful attitude toward consumers—mostly tourists—who cannot find out the true price of a ride.
The industry is irrelevant and outdated, and inhumane.
I SUPPORT A FULL BAN ON HORSE-DRAWN CARRIAGES.
Coalition To Ban
Horse-Drawn Carriages
A Committee of the Coalition For New York City Animals, Inc.
Contact:
The Coalition for
NYC Animals, Inc.
P.O. Box 20247
Park West Station
New York, NY 10025
e-mail
Coalition@banhdc.org
To honor
Bobby II Freedom
previously known as Billy
ID# 2873
rescued by the Coalition to
Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages and
Equine Advocates on June 25, 2010
from the New Holland auctions.
In memory of
Lilly Rose O'Reilly
previously known
as Dada ID# 2711
R.I.P.August, 2007