[County]

I think things like this are becoming more and more common especially with horses and in part its our own fault. More and more we want animals to be protected like horses but the people we put in position to do the job know nothing about horses. Unless we step up and help with the job this is going to happen more and more. We need to put horse people in these jobs and we need to back paying to train people to know what to look for.

[calypsoscarnivl]

Originally Posted by endurgirl

Had mud on their hooves that smelled like manure? Go figure *gasp*

I wish instead of smelling it they would have tasted it to confirm it was manure......

The gray in the pic looks pretty darn healthy and happy to me!!

HEHEHEHE

My horses have been in the cold for a really long time now....maybe I should heat my barn

I was always taught that a heated barn often does more harm than good in terms of disease and bacteria growth....

I don't know thw whole story, but something doesn't seem quite right

[Luna9]

Ok I guess that we all are guilty of abusing/neglecting our horses then......

People who dont know how to care for or know anything about horses for that matter should just keep their **** mouths shut.

[tbtrainer]

But officials say there was no heat in the makeshift barn.

I guess they will be coming after my horses next...I wonder if they will also now say that AC is required in a barn during the summer?

[endurgirl]

Wonder if PITA....er, I mean PETA had their hands in this for them to say "no heat".

[County]

Very possable and how much ya wanna bet no horse asso/group/etc. steps up to do anything?

[endurgirl]

From the article, it sounds like a non-horsey passerby made the call. And it sounds like someone non-horsey inspected the horse. For those comments to say "manure was found near the hoof" (umm, what do you think the horse stands on, ya idiot!!).

[Varisha]

Do you think letters to the news station teaching them about horse care would help?

[County]

I don't think it would hurt, I do know that only 2% of the people in this country own a horse. And unless that 2% start taking an interest in educating the other 98% this is going to happen more and more.

[Varisha]

This is my first go at a letter ... I think it needs polish but i'm not sure

In regards to your story "Horses Found Neglected In Carriage Company Tent". From one who even during heavy snow can look out her window and see her horses standing in the field. Yes my horses prefer to be out even in bad weather. They have full access to shelter but choose to be outside instead. The picture you showed did not show a malnourished horse at all, it showed a horse with its winter fuzz walking calmly. What experience with horses does Chicago Police Sgt. Mark George have? Does he know how to properly judge a horse’s health? Has anyone who was part of this case ever care for a horse or at least been trained specifically on horse care? By being in the tent the horses had shelter from the wind and their own body heat would warm the space. How many people do you think have a heated barn? A heated barn could prove bad for a horses health because they would be less likely to grow the coat they need to keep warm when outside.

Now let us go over the following paragraph from your article....
"Horses that should have been paraded with flowing manes and shiny coats were instead covered in mud and around their legs and hooves were clumps of what smelled like manure. It was enough to anger animal lovers and activists who have strongly opposed using horses to draw carriages."

In the winter horses grow out longer hair that protects them from the weather. This hair is typically not shiny at all. And if a flowing mane has anything to do with health then most Appaloosas must not be healthy because part of their breed standard is to have short manes and tails. Does the length of your hair have anything to do with your health? If it did then my bald dad must be sick. As far as the mud around their legs the picture does not show an excessive amount at all. Horses don’t care if they step in a pile and some seem to find the one pile you left unpicked to roll in. As a horse keeper this report angers me because there are horses out there that are skin and bones that even after multiple calls to the ASPCA the horses are left. While these horses that seem fit by the pictures I have seen are taken in the first visit.