The animal protection organisations Animal Legal Defense Fund and Voters for Animal Rights have made public the results of a new poll that shows New York City voters overwhelmingly support a ban on horse-drawn carriages in the city. The results include 71% support a ban on horse and carriage rides proposed by some city elected leaders “because of numerous charges of abuse of the horses”, 79% of respondents said they have “been aware of the mistreatment of horses (used in the carriage industry), and 90% of city voters said that the “issue of animal rights” in New York City is very important or somewhat important to them.
Allie Taylor, president of Voters for Animal Rights, said, “It’s no surprise that 71 % of New Yorkers support protecting horses from the abusive carriage horse drivers by shutting this cruel industry down,” said. “Forcing horses to pull carriages on the busy streets of New York City is barbaric, and we’re calling the City Council to swiftly pass legislation to ban horse carriages.”
This survey comes after an old horse named Ryder collapsed in Midtown Manhattan in the street at 45th and 9th on 10th August 2022, after being forced to work during a heat wave. On 14th July 2022, City Councilman Robert Holden (D-Queens) introduced legislation (Intro 573) that would end the horse-drawn carriage industry in New York City by prohibiting the issuance of new licenses and replacing the carriages with electric alternatives. New York native vegan actor Rooney Mara commented, “It is disgraceful that we’ve allowed this inhumane industry and public safety threat to continue…The incident involving Ryder is only one of countless incidents captured on camera that show the reality of these horses’ lives. This industry is an embarrassment to New Yorkers and I implore Speaker Adams to take immediate action to prevent further suffering and preventable deaths.”
