NAIA Official Blog

This may be last month’s news, but still worth a look:

Central Park horse carriage rated as better ride than electric car in Car and Driver magazine

As any city carriage driver could have told him, the buggies are surprisingly compact, light and make tight turns. When they’re pulled by one of the placid, experienced horses the drivers barely have to lift a finger to direct them. The hefty horses are adept at speeding up and slowing down their buggies, while the cumbersome electronic car couldn’t quite cut it in the city’s fast-moving traffic.

[…]

The aura of faded gentility, however, is part of what gave the horse carriage experience the most points: authenticity.

The e-vehicles lacked soul and history, Huffman said, and there’s no replacing that no matter how many bells and whistles a vehicle designer adds on.

Aside from the impressive tight turns, the environmental angle, the sense of authenticity and history, there’s something deeper to consider: the connection between horse and driver, the wonder of these incredibly strong and healthy animals doing what they love to do, and of course — the fun (which was ultimately the main reason the Car and Driver reviewer preferred carriage ride). You just can’t replace a good horse.

Definitely a fun little read — our only quibble is that it would have been nice for the review to cover the welfare of the carriage horses as well; the drivers are people who clearly adore their horses and treat them very well, and no matter how many experts speak to the excellent care and treatment these majestic animals receive, it always helps to have another voice countering the anti-horse carriage propaganda machine!

It is hard to come up with enough superlatives for this year’s NAIA Annual Conference. Every year, we are blessed with speakers possessing expertise, passion, and a gift for explaining the importance of their work — and every year, the event grows and improves.

Our conferences consist of people from such varied backgrounds: agriculture, science, hobbies and sports, rescue, public health, and business owners just to name a few. But they are all brought together by their dedication to the animals in their lives and their desire to share their stories in a way that empowers others.

This year was no exception: topics as varied as the chilling effect of activists on animal science, indigenous hunting rights, the fight for the carriage horse industry, food freedom, the landmark $25 million settlement paid by HSUS, ASPCA, et al. to Feld Entertainment, the current state of animal activism (“anarchy”) in the UK, and HBO’s hit piece on the AKC (Unnatural Selection), there was indeed something for everybody!

To everybody who presented, attended, and volunteered: thank you! We can’t do it without you — and we can’t wait to see you again next year!