HAY, QUIT IT!
National farm group rips Blaz on carriage ban
THEM CITY SLICKERS trying to boot carriage horses from New York don’t know diddly about livestock and should leave well enough alone, an influential farming group charged Wednesday.
The American Farm Bureau Federation — in an unusual foray into Big Apple politics — is calling on Mayor de Blasio to drop his plans to ban the horse and carriage industry from the city because it’s being pushed by people with no horse sense.
“This valued tradition allows people to connect with the horses and tour the city in a historic and unique way,” Bob Stallman, president of the Washingtonbased national group, said.
He called the carriage horses an “an important asset” to the city.
“Despite activist rhetoric that
these horses are tortured and mistreated, they are in fact well cared for and valued,” he said.
The group, which lobbies for farmers and educates members on the latest agricultural techniques, also said that the city horses tend to live just as long as their country kin, and horse owners don’t mistreat their animals because their “livelihoods” depend on it.
“New York City’s proposed ban isn’t coming from people who work with horses day-to-day,” Stallman said.
“Their claims aren’t based on science or recommendations from veterinarians. In fact, they ignore the expertise of ranchers, livestock owners, and animal care professionals who work with animals every day and have been caring for these horses for centuries.”
A spokesman for the 104-year-old Farm Bureau Federation said it was the first time in memory that the group weighed in on a Big Apple political issue.
They did so because “we love horses, and we love New York,” said spokesman Will Rodger.
NYCLASS, the animal rights group that donated heavily to de Blasio and many Council members, said the mayor’s plan was a “creative solution” that would end an “inhumane practice of forcing exhausted horses to pull rickety carts through dangerous Manhattan traffic.”
De Blasio is trying to replace the industry with vintagestyle electric cars.