REIN IN CALÈCHES
After the violent demise of Cecil the lion, the outcry over Ste- Perpétue’s pig festival and the seizure of 500 sick birds from a breeding facility in Montreal, there was finally some encouraging news out of the animal kingdom this week.
Montreal’s calèche horses, a longtime tourist attraction in the city, are seemingly in good health. After one of them took a serious tumble last month, mayor Denis Coderre requested an immediate veterinary assessment of all 56 horses currently pulling calèches in Old Montreal. The results show that the health of the calèche horses “has never been better.”
On the surface, this seems like a positive development. But an overall improvement in the condition of these animals was not hard to achieve considering how poor their health was before more regular inspections were instituted in 2012. At the time, several were found to have breathing problems and recurring wounds. The horses are now being monitored more carefully, but that is not enough to justify the continued existence of calèches on Montreal’s streets.
There have been too many accidents and too many controversies. In addition to the recent fall of a horse named Marilyn, other horses were pictured trotting around last week as the mercury soared to 31C, in spite of the fact that city regulations forbid the animals from working in temperatures exceeding 30C. Three summers ago, a horse bolted away from its owner, sending a woman to hospital and prompting the more stringent inspection schedule.
The Montreal SPCA has condemned the calèches, pointing out that fluctuating temperatures, hard pavement, the noise of traffic and exhaust fumes are all detrimental to an animal’s health. Some owners, meanwhile, have demonstrated that they cannot be trusted to police themselves. Since the beginning of this summer, horses have been pulled off the streets by veterinarians eight separate times as a precaution after they were found to be experiencing health issues.
The city has conducted seven inspection blitzes since May, and a clinician from the Université de Montréal’s outpatient horse clinic has stated that regular inspections must continue. Given the potential expense for taxpayers, and the still very real risks to the horses, this seems unsustainable.
Gradually reducing the number of permits issued each year while instituting a bylaw that would eventually ban calèches entirely would allow for easier placement of “retired” horses with rescue groups. It would also give the city time to find a more humane alternative for whisking tourists around.
It’s time for Montreal to follow the example set by cities like London, Mumbai, Paris and Toronto and put an end to this archaic industry.