I’m 36 and I’m a carriage driver in old Montreal since 16 years already. I love my job I think it’s the best job in the world and I know that it can be a good job for the horse to if you work it the right way. But the problem is that some owners don’t care about the horses and they hire driver like them that overwork the horses in all the ways.
Since I’m doing this job I’ve always wanted to save those horses. But it took me all those years to realize that how to do it and that the only way would be by becoming they’re biggest competition. Because the customers want the change to, they’re asking more and more questions about how we treat the horses and every year there is more people to accuse us without knowing anything about horses so they accuse anybody without knowing. So I often receive the insults that Like that man that told me that my horse had sour teeth because she was moving her nose from being nervous.
But what kill me the most is that I never push my horse to walk faster and sometimes big draft horses can be very slow and still be ok to work. But when they give bad comments about my horse without knowing me and how much I love her. Specially that I know that the horses that walk so fast it’s because the driver pushes them to do so. I know, I’ve seen the driver’s go through horses.
But I don’t want to tell you all the sad things I’ve seen. I just want to do something for the horses and I’m working really hard on it. Monty Roberts always have been my inspiration, I’ve read his first book long time ago, but today it’s more than that my mission in life is to do something to help the carriage horses without destroying the business and them with it.
I'm working on a project for new stables build with the spirit of join-up. For our horses and for our drivers. My mission is to help the carriages horses of Montreal that's a big thask for me but I'm getting closer from it everyday.
Bonne journée
Alexandra Van Peteghem
That's a fantastic goal, Alexandra! I hope others will help you too.
Thank you
I'm starting to build my team but for now the drivers are to affraid for theyre jobs they juts proved it today and elected the worst of the owners as the president of the association of the horsepeople of Montreal.
But of course they still don't know about my project because I'm not ready. I'm still working of my business plan. The hole concept is ready but there is still some numbers missing because it's a big concept not only a stable so there is a lot on things to put together but we are working on it.
I also need to say that I've chosen this topic on the empty forum to post my first message Because my heart his in my mission to help the horses. But even if I think I can do something and make a difference I know it's nothing compare to Monty Roberts work. All the knowledge, all the instructors and all the other horse gentlers that he gave us even spreads to the other animals now with "Cesar the dog whisperer" and all the other. Finally people are starting to learn the animal language instead of trying to teach the animals our language. And for that I think Monty Roberts his the most important person alive today. He started one of the bigest and most important change that people made and we could never thank him enough for that. And it's more than I hope to do but I'm going to give my best.
I was born in a big city and both of my parents never owned a car so the only horses I knew where the horses of the carriages in the old Montreal because my father's office was there. I want to protect the carriage job for the horses because it means more horses on the planet but also for all the other kids that love horses but have no accès to them.
Hi,
seeing some carriage horses while on holiday in spain always breaks my heart. It is good to know that some carriage drivers understand their horses !!
keep on talking to the other drivers
cheers,
Wolfram
Hi azelle7 I can tell you that I have seen both good and bad about carriage horses. The Rome experience was terrible and here in Berlin which is a big city too, I have only heard that a bad accident has hapend renently when a horse went balistic and ran like hell with his carriage behind it - the driver fell off. Immediately there were the animal protectors who now got the time of duty for the horses reduced from about 10 to 8 hours. But I agree with you, they might not really have an idea what a carriage horse and his driver is al about in a team together the whole long day. Ah yes, and I have seen the horses of Central Park NYC - and had to walk away because it broke my heart. BUT I can tell you that we have a real old city stable here in the district called Neukölln. They have four or six horses, four of them are a polish breed. I took a ride with my 100 year old grandma some weeks ago through the streets of Neukölln because I felt she should see the area where she has grown up and which has changed so much over the years in a carriage - also because it might be the last time for her to be there... Before I booked the trip I went there to make sure theses horses are well treated. They are ! In this moment they are already on their winter pasture outside Berlin. They will be back in April. If the people who own them have to tripes booked they get them out for a trip although to give them training and entertainment. The feet look great and the stables a large and clean. The place is very very old and really original. Keep us up to you incredibly brave plan ! and keep the faith !
I am really pleased to see your post, I've seen and heard things about these carriage horses for a long time. It is good to hear about someone trying to do something about the appauling conditions in which some of them live and work in. When I was about 12 I saw some horses in rome with really long feet, even then with no horse knowledge I could see there was something wrong, it's amazing and awful what some people get away with.
keep us up to date with your progress, I really hope it works out for you, it's such a good cause.
regards
chaz
Hi everyone a thank you for your nice comments.
Wolfram, The thing is not really to talk to the other drivers because what I've seen is that the good drivers don't stay in the business the way it is now because of the owners and the only way to solve the problem is to get rid of those careless owners but to do that without killing all the carriages you have to have some good carriages and the costumers are going to make the change because they're asking for it.
But to talk to the drivers it's hopeless if they still work for owner that forces them to overwork the horses. I know how it works I used to work for them.
It shocked me 2 years ago when I heard him explain to a new driver that the horses was pretending to limp to go back and he said that his saying was proved by the fact that the horses wasn't limping anymore and wanted to run when he was going back to the stables. And it shocked me because when I heard it. It reminded me that he told me the same thing when I started and that I believed it in the first place because at that time I knew nothing about horses. And I know how I had to fight has a driver to be able to respect my horse. And how I had to become one of his best driver before I could have any request.
The drivers aren't the solution because they’re not the source of the problem. It's like bitching at the waitress for the price of the meal. Bitching at the drivers just make the good ones quit. I almost did because I was tired of the people against the carriages. It's not that they’re is so many of them it's just that when you do this job for the love of the horse it really hurts. But the ones that don't care they don't care about anything and they've been there forever and I've seen so many good drivers quit. So many that I'm sure that they’re will be some of them back when they see the changes that I'm going to bring.
Vio Berlin,
Bad accident can happen when your on the road there is nothing to protect you from that. Last year a carriage that was on the stand got hit by a drunk driver that was doing a U turn. Even if you don't move it can happen when your on the road.
We are limited to 9h of work with our horses. But sometimes when it's very busy 7 hours can be to much but 12 hours could be ok if your making only 4-6 rides of 30 minutes staying on the flat and the horse has all the food, water and attention that it needs. That's one of the reasons why I'm saying regulation isn't the solution.
And your talking about the horses in central park. I've never seen them other than on you tube but for what I've seen on the tape that where accusing them of cruelty. They’re horses are in better shape than the horses in Montreal.
If your sorry about them only because they're in traffic. I would tell you that horses are animal of habits and that once the horse is used to the city they feel more confortable there than in the country. Like when I bring my mare on park of the Mont-Royal were she almost never goes. It's a lot more like a natural habitat for her but she's a lot more nervous because she doesn't know the place very well.
i love carriage horses they are so gentle and beautiful and they dont deserve to be treat how they are, you are making the world a better place :)
I'm really doing all my best for it.
I really love my horse and my idear of hapiness is to be happy at work because that's where you spend most of your life. That's why I'm driving my carriage I love to give rides. Of course since I love my horse I want her job to be as easy as possible so she can be happy to and that's where all my motivation comes from.
But be careful Lauren wen you say that:"... they dont deserve to be treat how they are,..." because when you say it like that it's like you put everyone in the same basket like that tomorow you would cross me and think that my horse is a poor horse. It's not all the carriage horses, the job isn't that bad and it's not all the drivers and all the owners that aren't good to the horses. I'm not the only horse lover. But I think that to do that job all the drivers should be horse lovers.
The big problem is exactly how impossible it is to talk about the bad owners whit out giving a bad image of all the carriages. That's why it's so hard to get rid of them and why I need to do all that.