Concerns after horses fall pulling carriage
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Some Memphians are saying horse-drawn carriages and passengers in downtown Memphis should be banned.
For years, horse-drawn carriages transported passengers, many of whom were tourists, and have been a part of the downtown Memphis landscape.
On Thursday, the sight of what some thought were injured horses lying on the ground near a white carriage left some people disturbed.
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One of them was Memphian Annalisa Kirchner, who reached out to Your News Leader to share her concerns.
'So, I was driving onto Mud Island taking the back way and saw a horse under a carriage laying down on the grass on the side of the road, people standing around it. It appeared to be sick or hurt,' said Annalisa Kirchner, a Memphis resident.
Some of the photos sent to WREG show carriage workers, witnesses, and first responders tending to the animals.
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'There were a few people standing around and looked like the people who had been on the carriage and some people who stopped their cars to get out and help,' said Kirchner.
WREG learned the horses belong to Mark Bills, who owns Uptown Carriage Company. In a statement, Bills tells WREG what he says happened.
'We were testing a team of new horses to make sure they are safe for the public,' said Bills. 'But on the way to the barn, one of the horses stumble,d causing the other horse to fall.'
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'Our team arrived on the site to transport the horses to the barn. Memphis Animal Services came by and inspected the horses,' said Bill. 'There was not even a scratch on the horses, and they are fine.'
On the website change.org, some are calling for a ban on horse-drawn carriages on Memphis streets, similar to what was done in cities such as Chicago, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, and others.
Kirchner said she and her friends signed the petition to see if they could make a change that way.
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'This incident is extremely rare, and we've been in business for almost 30 years and like any industry you're going to have mishaps and at the end of the day the animals are safe,' said Bills.
Kirchner said that she is still troubled that Memphis is continuing carriage rides and that the horses are being treated so poorly.
WREG also reached out to the City of Memphis and Memphis Animal Services for an official comment but have yet to receive a response.
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