Carriage Rides in Philly.

I used to support carriage rides in the city. So much so I decided to apply to one of the carriage Companies.

I quit after my second day working for a carriage co. run in the city, its bad. Unless you actually go behind the curtain and look for yourself, you will never realize how bad it really is. My story is to long to tell but I have a degree in equine science and after what I saw happen to these horses and how they are treated it is shameful. I could not believe it. A day after I quit on April 19 2010 a car hit several carriages, one guy lost an ear, one guy broke a arm and a woman went flying over a fence into a yard. I am an eye witness to mistreatment of horses in a carriage co and a day after this a car hits a carriage. ( the car hit the same carriage co and yes if I stayed I would of been one of the ones hurt)

So I am asking all of the citizens in PA to help put an end to carriage rides in the city.
You may ask is it really bad?


I can assure you it is, the stalls are very small. They are not cleaned everyday. The horses go out to do rides even if they are lame or injured. They are not fed properly and hay is left in a manure filled stall for them to eat. Staff unfortunately lack equine care knowledge. Tools staff uses are very old and out dated. Dish washing soap should not be used on horses and yet this company seemed to use it. Some of the staff are homeless and really do need help, also some of them who are hired to clean stalls are mentally ill and are taken advantage of and aren't payed over $20 a week. Hence why the stalls are never cleaned.

So what can you do?

First- don't go riding in a carriage in Philly.

Second- contact the Mayor and local reps tell them that carriage rides no longer belong in the city especially if they aren't going to be done correctly.

Third- Educate others on the conditions of the rides so they will tell their friends not to participate in animal cruelty.

Fourthly- Be on the look out for petitions or bills that may turn up on banning rides in Philly, and try and push for these petitions to get signed or bills passed.

I myself am going to write a letter to the Mayor and I may try to get signatures from people of the city and Horse Organizations. The Carriage Co I was with I reported to the PSPCA and L&I. However when I talked to The Humane Society Of The United States, they informed me the best thing to do is to write to the Mayor and contact local reps.

Thanks to all who read this, I just want others to be aware the carriage rides may look nice, but when the curtain is pulled back the truth is sickening.