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HORSE SENSE
Periodic updates about issues and actions concerning New York City's Carriage Horses +
Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages
www.banhdc.org
Horses Without Carriages International
www.horseswithoutcarriages.org
PLEASE FORWARD TO FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES - CLICK HERE to get your own newsletter. In this issue: contact the mayor ** two responses to Liam Neeson's film ** looking for volunteers ** Bobby II Freedom celebrated re-birthday ** Tim Gunn speaks out for the horses ** We are advertising in Metro ** Sign our Petition to ban horse-drawn carriages in NYC
LOOK BACK AT PREVIOUS NEWSLETTERS - in our archives. Click Here.
PLEASE CONTACT MAYOR DEBLASIO
if you have not already done so
Contact Mayor deBlasio - tell him that you want a ban of horse-drawn carriages THIS YEAR. Ask him to move on this now. If he delays it for three years or if there is another accident, it will hurt him politically. Tell him that you voted for him because he promised to ban the trade - and even on the first day he took office, which we knew was an impossibility. Now he has put a time frame on it until the end of the year. Click Here. Please be respectful. Image - Hot day on the hack line -- no shade.
TWO RESPONSES TO LIAM NEESON'S "FILM"
different but complimentary - please read them both
The first - NYC Horse Carriages vs. Carriage Horses is by Jason Hribal - published in Counter Punch June 24, 2014 -- this is an excerpt: The film then goes on to describe this historical bond between humans and horses as one of companionship. This is not true. For my dissertation, I researched a four hundred year period, roughly from 1600 to the present, examining the relationships between humans and working animals. For horses and those individuals who used them for their labor, it was very rare to find any sort of friendship or companionship. It was wonderful when I did come across such things but this was the exception to rule. Whether for farmers, loggers, wagon drivers, canal boaters, coal miners, or cotton millers, their primary relationship to horses was exploitative. The attitudes ranged from indifference to hostility to sadism. This was all about work and getting it done. These above individuals were the ones who oversaw that the horses did just that. This was the rule.
The other contribution is a blog by Elizabeth Forel (me), published on June 29, 2014 - comparing the lying statements from the film with the real facts. Liam, Lies and More Lies. This is an excerpt: FILM: The industry is overseen by 5 agencies and there are 144 pages of regulations.
TRUTH: This, of course, is not true since the ASPCA gave up humane law enforcement in January - so it is actually 4 agencies. But it is all moot, since the industry is out of control and there is little enforcement of any of those regulations. The fact that there are 144 pages of regulations is absurd. Yes there might be -- I have never counted them. But so what since many of the laws are not enforced - from the manure catchers being attached incorrectly causing abrasions on the horse - to horses being dangerously left untethered and unattended - to the many u-turns they make illegally; to overloading their carriages right in front of the police officers who do not know the regulations and apparently do not care.
FILM: Neeson brags that the horses get "5 weeks of country vacations"
TRUTH: Enough of this ridiculous statement. Horses need daily turn out to pasture, which they do not get in NYC - not a questionable trip to the "country." We have good sources that tell us many of the horses go to Amish farms and are being worked in exchange for the driver fulfilling this "vacation" obligation. But because the Department of Health decided not to ask for a list of the "farms" or do inspections - anything goes. It has also been said that many of the horses look worse when they return from this so called vacation. It is most likely because they were worked and not fed properly. In a NY Post story about a horse who dropped dead in October 2011, former ASPCA equine veterinarian Dr. Pam Corey said in the NY Post "We have observed some horses returning to New York City after furloughs on a farm in worse condition than when they left." it is shameful that this was ignored by authorities.
WE ARE LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEERS
must be dependable and available during the day
WE ARE LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEERS to be at the hack line this summer to monitor - Date/time stamp cameras required. Regardless of what you hear the trolls saying - NO ONE ENFORCES THESE LAWS. Contact us at coalition@banhdc.org if you live or work around 59th and 5th-6th.
BOBBY II FREEDOM CELEBRATED HIS RE-BIRTHDAY
rescued from the kill auctions on June 25, 2010
This is from Equine Advocates: Happy Re-Birth Day Bobby!!
It was four years ago today that Bobby II Freedom, a former New York City Carriage Horse, was rescued from slaughter after pounding the pavement of the New York City streets for seven years, which is a much longer period of time than most NYC carriage horses last - hence his "rebirth."
He had been standing in the kill pen of one of the most notorious killer buyers in the eastern US at the New Holland slaughter auction in Lancaster County PA...But he was discovered there and luckily he was in a situation where he could be purchased. Bobby's 4-digit hoof number 2873, his NYC license plate, was still visibly carved in his front left hoof. Reportedly, the carriage horse operators sand them off so that no one will know that these horses go to slaughter or are able identify them as former NYC carriage horses when at the slaughter auctions.
Luckily for Bobby, the Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages (CBHDC) found and identified him and raised the money to buy and transport Bobby to safety. Equine Advocates organized and expedited his rescue, including his transport to New York. We shipped him to an equine hospital first for a complete examination, and then the very next day, took him "home" to Equine Advocates Rescue & Sanctuary in Chatham, NY where he has been retired ever since...and saved from slaughter forever!
Read all the details of his amazing story and rescue here: http://www.ruralintelligence.com/index.php/community_section/results/horse_heaven_escaping_the_plate/
Bobby is a very special horse. He is also an ambassador for other urban carriage horses who are used and then discarded when they can no longer earn what they must earn in order to occupy a stall. Once they can't perform, they are gone. According to Elizabeth Forel of CBHDC, 60 - 70 of the 220 horses that work the NYC carriage horse trade disappear off the rolls every year. Where do most of them end up? Well, we know what was going to happen to Bobby. Luckily, he is alive and well...and definitely kicking!
If Bobby could talk, he would say, "Horses do not belong in traffic!" We hope that Mayor Bill de Blasio will not back peddle on his promise to end the urban carriage horse trade in New York City as soon as possible. We want to thank comedian and TV talk show host, Bill Maher for publicly coming out strongly against this miserable business which is extremely dangerous for residents and visitors to the city and cruel and inhumane for the horses.
Let's all indulge in some carrot cake to celebrate Bobby's rebirth to freedom and safety today...And as for the man himself, he prefers carrots to cake and we'll make sure he gets plenty of them and an apple or two as well! Happy Re-Birth-Day, dear Bobby! We love you! (image is by Equine Advocates of Bobby asking for carrots instead of carrot cake.
TIM GUNN SPEAKS OUT FOR HORSES
June 23, 2014 - Tim Gunn Reveals Anti-Gay Rant by New York Carriage Driver - From the article: Gunn, a longtime animal rights activist and a strong advocate for gay rights, wrote to the mayor telling him that, "I'm proud to live in Manhattan, it can be a haven of tolerance, but the carriage drivers are warping it into a hotbed of hate. Bullies such as the drivers in these videos disregard not only the suffering of animals but also the basic rights of New Yorkers."
WE ARE ADVERTISING IN METRO
please donate what you can for our advertising campaign
We will continue to run ads in Metro as long as we can.
you may donate here. Please remember we are all volunteer and do not take salaries. Every penny you donate is put back into the organization. We are the organization that began the "ban" campaign in 2006 and we plan to continue our ad campaign until this inhumane, unsafe and abusive trade is stopped. We are hoping Mayor deBlasio takes positive action soon.
Thanks to all of you who have donated to our campaign. It is much appreciated.
SIGN OUR PETITION TO BAN HORSE-DRAWN CARRIAGES IN NYC
to Mayor and City Council
If you have not already signed this important petition, please do so now. And please share with others. We want Mayor deBlasio to keep his campaign promise and shut down this inhumane and unsafe carriage trade. We do not want a 3-year phase out because it will not work. So please click here to sign the petition and please share it with your friends and colleagues.
PLEASE JOIN US ON OUR SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS
Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Google Blog & Flickr
HELP OUR ORGANIZATION BY SHOPPING ON LINE - iGIVE
Also check out Cafe Press to purchase CBHDC merchandise
Through a free registration with iGive, when you buy merchandise on line, your purchase will help us. There are over 700 stores that include such popular ones as Amazon.com, Staples, Best Buy and Barnes & Noble. Even Cafe Press is available if you purchase some of our merchandise. Click here to get started.
On iGive - the name of our organization is "The Coalition for NYC Animals, Inc." Click here to begin. We also have three stores on Cafe Press with great t-shirts, bags, hats, mugs, mouse pads, etc. Purchasing this merchandise helps our organization. Click here.
"Never doubt that a small group of
thoughtful, committed citizens can change the
world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever
has." Margaret Mead.
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Thank you for caring about the horses,
Elizabeth Forel - Coalition to Ban
Horse-Drawn Carriages - a standing committee
of The Coalition for New York City Animals,
Inc.
Please DONATE
to our campaign to ban
the inhumane and unsafe carriage horse industry.
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