Actress Joanna Lumley Speaks Out Against Horse-Drawn Carriage Industry

by Michael Parrish DuDell December 13, 2010
Categories: Animals
Tags: joanna lumley.
Photo: prphotos.com

British actress and animal advocate Joanna Lumley is on a mission! The Absolutely Fabulous star is part of a campaign working to end horse-drawn carriages in New York’s Central Park.

Lumley believes that horses shouldn’t be forced to work in “freezing and boiling” weather and hopes authorities will soon pass legislation banning the trade.

“People have an old romantic notion about it. I would just say, ‘Please think again – think of the freezing and boiling weather they are forced to work in, and think of the cramped city stables where the horses are kept,” Lumley said.

“I wish they would just allow the horses to remain in Central Park, but I understand that’s hard to achieve with the city. I love the bill aimed at replacing the horse-drawn carriages with Great Gatsby-era cars. That is glamorous.”

What do you think about Central Park’s horse-drawn carriages? Totally cool or ridiculously cruel? Leave a comment and share your thoughts!

crumpets are yummy

I imagine most of those horses are left overs from the trotting/ racing industry, so is giving those horses a second chance at life. Better than being sent to the knackery and better than air polluting gatsby era cars.
- stephanie
  
  The horses are left overs from the cruel racing industries, but being a NYC carriage horse is HARDLY a second chance at life or a way to spend their “retirement”. And after the work day in and day out in all sorts of horrible weather conditions, walking on concrete all day, hauling lazy tourists, getting spooked by cars, hit by buses and breathing in exhaust…once they are no longer useful…they are sold for slaughter anyway.
  
  And the bill to replace the horse carriages with cars…they are ELECTRIC cars. So no pollution nor cruelty involved.
  - NYC dude
    
    A second chance at life? Hardly. It is no life to be a slave pulling tourists around for hours each day without a break, confined between the shafts of their carriage. It is also a mistake to think that the horses are being saved by working in this business. When they are worked till they drop, which is sooner rather than later, they are on their way to the slaughter house. The NYC carriage horses are not a billboard. The turnover is very high.
    
    Think Black Beauty.
  - http://www.herwinsvegancafe.com herwin
    
    Joanna Lumley, extremely funny actress and great vegetarian.
    @ Crumpets. Better get informed about the lifes of these horses, its not a nice second change they get. Its from racing abuse to city abuse.
tara

Those horses absolutely break my heart. It would be humane to retire their carriage life, however, it should be a *requirement* that they are *not* sent to the meat factories, those places are horrific. Instead they should either be placed into loving homes in Westchester county, CT, or NJ, or given to rescue places for adoption. This should be part of any bill.
whitney

I went to Atlanta when I was a small child and I remember pitching a fit when my parents suggested going on a horse and carriage ride. I thought they hurt the horses and the driver *ASSURED* me they did NOT. Not much I could do as I was 6/7 years old but now that I’m grown, I sure as hell can do something about it now.
http://Stopcrush.org sheila

someone obviously has not seen the devastation of these horses. this is not a humane life.
not how I want to go out of this world, mis-used ’til I drop!