Horse Crashes into Car in NYC Prompting Calls for a Ban on Horse-Drawn Carriages
Shocking photos and videos from the aftermath of the incident show the street covered in blood.
Credit: Matthew_t_dominguez
A horse forced to pull a carriage through the busy streets of New York collided with a car just south of Central Park last Thursday.
The horse named Chief crashed into the back of a BMW sedan after becoming startled, according to eyewitnesses. After falling to the ground, the animal lay unconscious before waking up and struggling to get back on their feet. He was then rushed to Clinton Park Stables.
The horse suffered deep lacerations to his midsection, head, and front right leg said the NYPD. This was reportedly Chief’s first day pulling a carriage in New York City.
Photos and video footage shows the road where the incident happened smeared with blood and strewn with debris.
The crash has prompted a new call from animal activists to ban carriage horses in New York.
“How many more bloody crashes, collapses, horse deaths, human injuries have to happen?” said Edita Birnkrant, executive director of NYCLASS.
The organization joined up with animal rights group PETA to stage an emergency protest outside the stable where Chief is being held on Monday 27 September to demand NYC elected officials fast-track legislation to ban horse-drawn carriage rides.
“This is just the latest in a string of horse neglect, abuse, law-breaking, and suffering that we have exposed. Chief needed stitches for the multiple bloody gashes on his body from the crash - we are very worried about his condition and his future,” said NYCLASS who state that Chief “hasn’t been X-rayed or given proper veterinary care” since the crash.
NYCLASS is also demanding that Chief “be released to a sanctuary to receive proper veterinary care and lifelong love and peace after his traumatizing crash”, according to an Instagram post.
The organization is encouraging New Yorkers to contact their local leaders about this incident, and demand that they support proposed laws that would promptly ban the use of horse-drawn carriages in the city. VFAR has a form on its website to help you do just that — just fill out your name and address, and an email will be sent on your behalf to the mayor, the police commissioner, your local council member, and more.
NYCLASS is urging people outside of NYC, to call Speaker Corey Johnson's office at 212-788-7210 asking for a ban on horse-drawn carriages, and for those who live in New York to take action by calling their NYC Council member. Voters for Animal Rights also have a form on its website to help New Yorkers speak out.
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