Horse Forced to Give Carriage Rides Collapses and Dies in Central Park
Heartbreaking footage of the incident renews call for a ban on NYC’s carriage horses.
Credit: Amy Jones/Moving Animals
A 12-year-old mare named Aisha, has collapsed and died after being forced to give controversial carriage rides in New York City’s Central Park.
The horse was filmed stumbling and unable to straighten her back legs. She then collapses. In an effort to make her stand, carriage-industry workers appear to blow smoke into Aisha’s face, leading her to flip over in terror.
“Instead of calling a qualified vet, to help this horse, several carriage drivers tied him up with ropes, shoved, pulled him into a trailer and they took him back to the stable,” says Edita Birnkrant, executive director of NYCLASS (New Yorkers for Clean, Livable, and Safe Streets).
A carriage industry group reported that Aisha was later euthanized.
The shocking death has renewed calls for the controversial trade to finally be banned. Animal rights group, NYCLASS, who have long spoken out on the horrors of the horse-carriage trade, staged a protest with over 150 New Yorkers in Central Park.
Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted that the footage of Aisha’s death “is painful and says so much about a persistent problem”. He revealed the NYPD Animal Cruelty Investigation Sqaud is investigating the incident, and assured that they “WILL get answers”.
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