Calèche horses healthier than ever, report says
The health of calèche horses in the Ville-Marie borough has never been better, according to a report released by the city of Montreal on Thursday.
Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre called for the report after a picture of a fallen horse at a construction site near the corner of Peel and Notre-Dame Sts. went viral in mid-July.
The executive summary of the report concluded that the incident, which involved a horse named Marilyn, was an isolated one. The rest of the report reviewed the health of the 56 horses used to pull 24 calèches in Old Montreal, a ride popular with tourists.
There have been seven horse inspection “blitzes” since May 2015, according to the report. Of the 45 inspections listed on a table included in the city’s report, 20 were unremarkable. One was a special operation to band the horses. Other inspections resulted in suggestions that horses be allowed to rest or needed to gain or lose weight. Nine horses were found to have wounds.
The owners of the horses are redacted on the documents.
“According to our veterinarians, the health of the calèche horses in Ville-Marie has never been better, despite a few cases dealt with during the season,” the summary said.
A retrospective on the veterinary exams performed on the calèche horses, written by a clinician with the Université de Montréal’s outpatient horse clinic, was included among the documents released by the city. According to the document, when the inspections began in 2012, the horses were in poor condition, and some suffered from recurring wounds and breathing problems.
The document stated that the clinic’s opinion is that “the practice of calèches in Montreal do not rise to an act of animal cruelty, and this industry does not go against the well-being of the animal.” However, “in light of the significant improvement of the health of calèche horses since 2012, the inspections must continue in the future.”
Also included in the documents is paperwork from Marilyn’s veterinary visit a few days after her fall. According to the report, the veterinarian recommended that Marilyn rest for a few days, that the wound on her leg be cleaned and disinfected, and that the horse take anti-inflammatory medication for three days.
“I understand that some people may be concerned by the health of Montreal’s horses,” Coderre said in a statement announcing the report. “The dissemination of these documents will allow everyone to have an accurate picture of the situation, and we can work together to improve the conditions of these animals,” he said.