I saw The Misfits a while ago, the John Huston film with Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe. I ran out of the theater in tears. They do roundups in the film, which is how we get horses in the first place. We capture them, kidnap them and take them away from their lives. Horses form tight-knit bands and this shatters their social structure. Fouls are taken from their mothers and they are placed in a traumatizing, unnatural situation. This movie is a great example of why it's awful to take horses and make them work for us. Some people love The Misfits, but I was too upset to get through it. Huston didn't fake any of the roundup scenes. I hope others out there that saw the film had the same, moving reaction that I did. It would at least give his brutal, artistic choice some meaning in the world. It's not at all ok with me what Huston did here.

Roundup practices are what made horse-drawn carriages possible in the first place. These carriages have always upset me. Horses are beautiful, galloping creatures that are meant to run in the wild. You can see in their eyes how miserable they are going alongside traffic, dealing with the noise, and not to mention the huge chance of collision. It's dangerous for both humans and the horses. This video illustrates my point:

I feel certain that it wasn't in God's plan to have these magnificent creatures that were meant to run in the wild live their lives this way. They are slaves...no freedom, no life, no joy.

Carriages are still popular in New York. I'm grateful to other tourist cities like Biloxi, Palm Beach, Key West, Paris and London, who are sophisticated enough to have already banned horse-drawn carriages. New York is considering the ban and I'm wondering what their hesitation is. There is a great speech given by veterinarian, Holly Cheever, at an event called "Yay or Neigh: Should the carriage industry be banned in NYC?". I've posted bits and pieces from her presentation below, but you can see the whole thing and get more info HERE.

Horses are exposed to health hazards such as:

RESPIRATORY DISEASE - horses working in traffic lanes are constantly nose-to-tailpipe, and show corresponding respiratory impairment

LAMENESS is a major problem for horses who must pound the city streets' unnaturally hard, concussive surfaces, especially since the majority are not given adequate farrier care and since many horses come into this industry with preexisting injuries or arthritis incurred in their previous uses on race tracks or Amish farms.

HEAT PROSTRATION is seen in many cities in the northern temperate zone and has been the leading cause of death in the carriage horse populations of New York, Atlanta, and Boston. Since New York City's asphalt surfaces have reached temperatures of 200 degrees Fahrenheit as reported in the New York Times, keeping horses sufficiently cool on hot summer days becomes impossible. The low end of the scale should include a wind chill factor for the obvious reason that all mammals are more susceptible to hypothermia when wind chill is present.

"SPOOKING" can happen to even the best trained and well-mannered horse. Their evolution as herbivores (i.e. prey animals) has conditioned them to bolt first and consider the situation later, dictating the need for the driver to be constantly in contact with the horse's head, whether by holding the reins securely from the carriage box or by standing at the horse's head with the reins in hand.

Here's what we can do to help move this ban forward:

"¢ This Friday, March 12th!! You can make a difference! The New York City Council's Consumer Affairs Committee is holding a public hearing. They will address several horse carriage bills like the NYCLASS (New Yorkers for Clean, Livable, and Safe Streets) bill which the NYLHV (New York League of Human Voters) has been working on for well over a year. The NYCLASS bill seeks to phase out the horse carriages over three years and replace them with the 21st Century eco-friendly, horseless carriage. This new industry offers the current horse carriage drivers high paying union jobs, establishes accountability measures to ensure a safe and fair industry, makes the City a leader in eco-tourism, and retires the current carriage horses to farms and sanctuaries!

"¢ You can attend the hearing and even speak at it. Check out their facebook page for the hearing HERE. And if you can't make it, click HERE to send a fax to your City Council Member urging support for the NYCLASS bill and opposing the horse carriage industry's undeserved fare increase bill.

"¢ Visit the Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages and educate yourself. You will also find a petition on the site that you can sign to try and end this.

"¢ The most effective way to put a stop to this is to contact your local legislator and ask if they will sponsor a ban. Whether you are a New Yorker or not you can also contact the mayor's office. Additionally, you can contact New York City counsel members and ask them to support Intro 658-A, the bill to ban horse drawn carriages and to oppose Intro 653-A the industry bill.

"¢ You can sign this petition on the PETA website in conjunction with singer Pink's fight to end horse-drawn carriages. Pink is working hard to end this.

"¢ Watch the documentary called Blinders: The Truth Behind The Tradition, which takes an in-depth look at the horse-drawn carriage industry.

And finally, If you want that horse-carriage feel, why not go for the guys/gals on the bike taxis?! They want to do the job, they choose to do the job, and they always look so happy riding around! It's better than a taxi in terms of gas and such, and sorta has that same carriage-y vibe.