I know it seems like we talk about avoiding animal cruelty a lot, and maybe we do, but it’s something we believe passionately in and want to draw attention to.

I mean, why would anybody knowingly want to abuse an animal? To us, it doesn’t make sense and we hope you agree.

Horse Cruelty in Seville

I had no idea about the amount of horses that were used to pull carriages in Seville and I was VERY shocked to see just how many horses there are badly treated and subjected to horse cruelty.

In our opinion horse carriage rides are exploitative and unnecessary. I have no intention of adding to any animal’s suffering so I will always do my best to draw attention to it.

What’s up with this horse?

On our travels around the city, we came across this poor horse in the blazing heat.

The horse’s owner was in a bar and the horse’s bit ( the metal thing in its mouth) was so large and tightly pulled up against its cheeks that it couldn’t physically drink.  It was hanging its head and tongue into the water, desperately trying to drink but it couldn’t.

Of course, we had a few run ins with the Spanish men that drive these carriages and I was frequently referred to as ‘stupid woman’ but this will not deter me from highlighting these animal’s sufferings.

Twelve reasons to avoid horse carriages in Seville

1. They’re overworked, frequently working twelve hours a day and longer in summer months. Their stables are over 10km away as well, so when their working day is over they must travel 10km further.
2. Horses are frequently dehydrated, frothing at the mouths, with their tongues hanging out.
3. Despite wearing blinkers that cover 60% of their vision, these horses are easily spooked by the volume of traffic and beeping horns. Many riders flaunt traffic rules and endanger their horses.
4. The majority of horses we approached, seemed terrified of people and cowered away us.
5. Many horses have poor hoof care with overgrown and cracked hooves.
6. The harnesses frequently appeared to be incorrectly fitted or designed for a much smaller/larger horse.
7. It was not uncommon to see bits wrongly sized for the horse’s mouth and fitted incorrectly.
8. Horses slip and get stuck on the cobbles. It is only a matter of time before casualties occur again. It is worse when it has been raining.
9. Whipping the horses was a frequent sight, even when they had been spooked.
10. The already heavy carriages were regularly overloaded with (large) people considering the size of the horses.
11. Very young horses were used, some amounting to little more than foals.
12. Horses can be seen around the city with no shade, whether it be resting or working.

What do animal agencies say?

PETA gives ten reasons why you shouldn’t support horse ride carriages.

One horse died in 2014 whilst working, due to heat and exhaustion.

NYClass wrote this article detailing the amount of accidents that had occurred within NYC. The problem with Seville is most accidents are not reported.

The animal welfare institute thinks horse drawn carriages should be banned outright as they’re unnecessary.

Equine Advocates is committed to exposing the truth about the carriage horse trade and recommends watching the film Blinders where large animal veterinarians explain why horse-drawn carriages cannot be operated humanely or safely.

Sign this petition

I still don’t understand why horse carriage rides are allowed and recently the city of Barcelona banned them. This gives us hope that Seville might follow suite.

If you agree please consider Signing this petition calling for better treatment of horses.

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