Q: Is walking on pavement hard on the horses?
No. In the wild, horses wear down their hooves naturally by walking on rocks, trees, vegetation, etc. Domesticated horses have their hooves trimmed and protective horseshoes mounted by professional farriers. This practice greatly reduces the risk of injury to a horse’s hoof: hoof injuries can be detrimental to a horse’s overall health, and in severe cases, fatal.
In order to alleviate possible hoof and/or joint injuries from walking on pavement, our horses are fitted with horseshoes specially formulated to take the friction and heat of walking on pavement away from their hooves. Their shoes have a steel core for support, but are surrounding by a 2 inch layer of polyurethane that does not heat with friction and provides cushioning from the pavement – they are like running shoes for horses.
Since we posted information on these shoes on our website in 2006, we have received a number of inquiries from carriage companies internationally on where to purchase them. These shoes are highly regarded by horsemen (and women!) as an effective means of maintaining foot health.
Q: What are the impacts of traffic exhaust on the horses?
None of our horses have ever suffered from respiratory disease. The air quality in Victoria has been scientifically tested and rated as “good and far below any applicable guidelines” – it poses no health risks to humans or animals. We are lucky to live in an area of the world that has significantly low pollution levels.
Q: What are the impacts of traffic congestion on the horses?
None. Heavy traffic does not seem to bother the horses, although strange looking vehicles may cause some horses to “take a second look”. We do not operate in high-traffic areas of the city.
Q: Do the horses live downtown?
No. The horses are brought into town for their shifts and then immediately returned to the farm and their herd.
Q: Are the horse fed and watered while working?
Yes. While away from their barns the horses receive grain, which provides dietary nutrients as well as energy. We have access to clean city water and the horses are watered regularly. We do not leave water buckets out for the horses to freely drink from as the water could become contaminated by some unknown source (human waste, bird dropping, etc).
Q: What happens to the horses when they can no longer pull a carriage?
They retire. The horses are part of a family of owners and employees and will always be provided a home to live out their lives with one of the humans who love them. We have a number of horses in our herd that are no longer working and are kept strictly as pets.
Q: How do you know that the horses like what they’re doing?
Much like a dog, the horse is a highly intelligent and social animal that requires companionship, exercise and mental stimulation. A horse that is not having its intrinsic needs satisfied may develop an assortment of bad habits – they may become uncooperative, nervous or lethargic. We’ve never experienced these issues with any of our horses. We also think it’s a good sign that they all line up at the gates each morning, almost saying “pick me, pick me!”
Q: What is the average life-span of a horse?
Draft (or heavy) horses, such as we use in our operation, often live an average of 25 years. Our horses are living well beyond the norm – often well into their mid-30s. We are fairly certain that the steady, low-strain and low-impact exercise that pulling a carriage provides is contributing to their life expectancies. They say walking is the best thing we can do for our bodies; if any of that truth can apply to the horse, than this makes sense!
Q: How much weight can a heavy horse pull?
Tremendous amounts – a draft horse can pull 4 times their body weight in dead-weight! At the National Western Stock Show in Denver, Colorado, a team of two belgian horses weighing 4,800 lbs pulled 17,000 lbs over 7 feet. At the Iowa State fair, a team of one Belgian and one Percheron weighing 3,600 lbs pulled 14,600 lbs the complete distance of 15 ft. Do the math and these horses are pulling up to 4 times their body weight!
In comparison, our carriages weigh approximately 1,000 lbs. Even fully laden with six passengers, each of our horses would be pulling a maximum weight of 2,000 lbs – and that’s on wheels! Compared to what they can pull in dead-weight, the carriage would be like us carting around a two year old child in a wagon.
