Activity

Draft animals – including donkeys, mules, camels, oxen and elephants as well as horses – suffer everywhere they are used. No one ethnic or religious group is to blame, but rather pervasive attitudes that allow people to treat animals as things and not as fellow sentient beings. Activists who are attempting to improve conditions for working animals must be encouraged and applauded, and government authorities must be compelled to implement humane standards for these animals, and then they must then act against and punish those who do not adhere to humane regulations to protect animals. Horses bred for racing are entirely unsuitable to pull heavy loads, and no horses or other working animals can withstand poor nutrition and thirst, bodily injuries and sores, extremely hot temperatures or standing in unshaded areas for lengthy periods of time, being forced to pull overly heavy carriages or carts, and of course whipping. Government officials must accept their responsibilities and tourists must be taught to refuse services involving mistreated animals. International charities do not have the resources to help draft animals in more than a few prominent tourist areas worldwide, and local charities need assistance.
http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/06/turkey-mistreatment-mars-horse-carriage-trade.html?utm_source=Boomtrain&utm_medium=manual&utm_campaign=20160617&bt_email=anpeople@whidbey.com&bt_ts=1466179637850

Activists seek to rein in horse mistreatment on unique Turkish islandMounting criticism over mistreatment of horses could end the carriage trade on Buyukada, a picturesque island near Istanbul that remains off limits to motor vehicles.