Horses are dropping like flies at Aqueduct racetrack. Since racing began November 30th, 16 horses have been injured and euthanized, most recently on Wednesday, when Hillsboro Bay injured her leg on the inner dirt track and had to be put down. The mile-long inner dirt track uses a special type of dirt over which races are run during the winter months, and it appears to be especially treacherous for thoroughbreds. The New York Racing Association [NYRA] announced that it would move races to the main track two weeks earlier than expected—just as Governor Andrew Cuomo sent a letter to the NYRA insisting they hire an outside investigator. more ›

Georgina Bloomberg, the equestrian daughter of Mayor Bloomberg, just had her latest young adult book hit bookstores/Amazon.com on Tuesday (think Gossip Girl but way less oversexed aimed at the horse-mad who will eventually read Riders) so she's doing interviews! In a chat with Manhattan Magazine, she finally clears up her famously pouty statement, "Having the last name Bloomberg sucks." more ›

Early Saturday morning, 22 show horses were killed in a massive barn fire in northern New Jersey. Authorities say the fire, which they believe was an accident, broke out at the Heritage Acres farm in Lafayette; by the time firefighters arrived just before 2 a.m., the barn was already engulfed in flames. The owners, who did not have insurance, are devastated: "We’re just going to sell our property. It was our business and we’re too old to start over," 73-year-old Betty Hahn told the Star-Ledger. more ›

You know what "edgy" Brooklyn needs? Rich people who ride pretty horses at exclusive champagne-fueled events. Fortunately, the Gucci Masters horse-jumping competition is coming to the Barclays Center in 2013, and organizers are using the opportunity to trot out as many trite Brooklyn cliches they can think of. more ›

Coupon clippers, keep your eyes peeled for great savings on the country's hottest new Congressionally sanctioned treat: horse meat! Yes, that's right, Congress has just lifted a five-year-old ban on funding horse meat inspections, which means that horse slaughterhouses in the US could be up and running in the next month. more ›

[Updates below] Another carriage horse collapsed in Midtown yesterday around 6 p.m. on West 60th Street near Broadway. A supporter of New Yorkers for Clean, Livable and Safe Streets shot a video clip of the horse on the ground. more ›

The results of a preliminary necropsy on a carriage horse named Charlie who collapsed and died in Midtown last Sunday show, "Charlie was not a healthy horse." According to the ASPCA, who performed the necropsy at Cornell, Charlie's cause of death is still uncertain, but he "was likely suffering from pain due to pronounced chronic ulceration of the stomach and a fractured tooth." Dr. Pamela Corey of the ASPCA says in a release, "We are very concerned that Charlie was forced to work in spite of painful maladies." more ›

More details have emerged regarding the horse that died on an El Al flight from Belgium to JFK this week. Virteuse, a $140,000 European warmblood was en route to his owner in Illinois when it began "kicking forcefully" around 30 minutes after taking off in Belgium. The Post reports that Virteuse, one of 10 horses on the flight, calmed down but died shortly after. USDA officials are conducting a necropsy to determine the cause of death. more ›

A horse being carried on an El Al cargo flight from Belgium to JFK reportedly died in mid-air this morning, and representatives from the USDA are on the scene to perform an necropsy. Flight 831 left Belgium's Bierset Airport early this morning and arrived 25 minutes late at 9:35 a.m. A Port Authority spokesman referred us to El Al, and we're awaiting a response from the airline and the USDA. more ›

While we weren't crazy about avoiding eye contact with the grumbling, chain-smoking masses outside the OTB on Delancey street, it looks even SADDER when it's dormant. But there's good news in today's Post for equine enthusiasts who happen to enjoy gambling: a Democratic state assemblyman and a Republican Senator are joining forces to resurrect off-track betting. more ›

Not only is smoking killing smokers and non-smokers, it's killing horses too! Six racehorses, one of which was owned by former New York Racing Association president Barry Schwartz, were killed after a flicked cigarette landed in their trailer while they were on the highway and set off a fire. The horses were trapped in the flames after a bale of hay set fire. more ›

To us plebs, the idea of horse carriages promenading through the the 56th Annual Viennese Opera Ball at the Waldorf-Astoria may seem like the epitome of wealthy exuberance. But it's that sort of acceptance of the merely ornate, and not a desire for the truly baroque, that keeps us from ascending to those very upper echelons of society. One 28-year-old attendee remarked, “If we’re in full white tie, and completely bedazzled, the horses should be, too." We hope this young squire never settles for anything less than legislation requiring all horses to wear tuxedos. more ›

It's been a month filled with accidents and changes for Mayor Bloomberg's daughter, but all those growing pains mean that now she can finally fulfill her destiny and become a living, breathing Billy Joel song. The equestrian-loving Georgina, who was injured in a jumping competition earlier this month, is relocating from NoLita to an apartment on Central Park West on the Upper West Side, trading in one trendy, yuppie neighborhood for a slightly less trendy, equally yuppie neighborhood. But on the plus side, she'll have a functional, non-mythical Shake Shack close by! This is good news for single guys who aren't Olympic speed-skating gold-medalists, and who aren't morbidly terrified at the prospect of dating Mayor Bloomberg's daughter. We'll see ya at Jake's Dilemma, Georgina! more ›

Though Mayor Bloomberg assured a city on edge that his daughter was doing just fine after her fall during a horse show over the weekend, news sources just weren't satisfied until they could hear it from the horse's mouth (sorry). Georgina Bloomberg told reporters, "I feel okay...It's all really okay. I'm going to get all better and go right back." Great, now everyone can calm down again. Except for Mayor Bloomberg, who expressed a bit of worry: "The horse weighs 2,000 pounds. George weighs 100. It's a pretty big mismatch if she winds up underneath the horse." more ›

Georgina Bloomberg, the horse-riding daughter of Mayor Bloomberg, was seriously hurt this weekend after falling during an equestrian jumping event in Syracuse. The 27-year-old suffered a concussion and fractured her spine when her saddle slipped and she fell off the horse she was riding, Radio City, on Friday night. "Despite the injury, she is resting comfortably. She's going to have a full medical evaluation (Monday.) We'll know more then," her equestrian spokesman Kenneth Kraus told reporters. more ›

We stumbled across one of these photos of a horse getting a shower in 1910, and it turns out that around that time the ASPCA brought not only these showers, but drinking fountains to the thousands of working horses in the city. Not only that, but EphemeralNY recently pointed out the SPCA's plan in 1902 to give free straw sombreros to the horses to shield their eyes from the sun! They were made by a horse outfitter in Union Square, and look just like regular hats (you can see one in one of the photos above). more ›

Shamrock Stables is closed for business... for now. The ASPCA continues to offer to place their remaining horses in homes; in a press release sent out yesterday, the organization stated: “On June 7, Shamrock Stables in Manhattan officially closes and the fate of the New York City carriage horses remains in the balance. [We] reaffirm our offer and commitment to finding suitable homes for these horses. Our primary concern is their welfare, and we stand ready to work with the City and other organizations that share our purpose to place these horses in environments where they will receive humane treatment.” more ›

The ASPCA issued a statement yesterday afternoon offering to find homes for the carriage horses being evicted from Shamrock Stables, which is being shuttered by the city in order to make way for residential and retail development. In it they said:

“The imminent closing of Shamrock Stables in Manhattan presents an opportunity to New York City, the carriage horse owners and those who favor the humane treatment of animals. The ASPCA, in partnership with NY-CLASS, has made an offer to Shamrock Stables and the City government to find homes for these horses, taking them off the streets and placing them in environments that have their best interests at heart. This option puts the welfare of the horses first and prevents them from being auctioned off to work farms or where the possibility for exploitation and inhumane treatment is high."

Looks like Shamrock Stables days are numbered. The city is reportedly moving ahead with a plan that would shut down the 45th Street carriage horse stable. According to the NY Times, in June the city will start construction on a housing development, a new school, and stores in the area. This will leave 1/4 of the city's carriage horses without a home. more ›

Some of New York's finest four-legged friends have been sent off to greener pastures, with a loud rally cry from animal rights activists sending them off. According to the NY Post, the head of the NYPD's Mounted Unit, Capt. Barry Gelbman, ordered three retired police horses put down upon their retirement, saying various leg ailments made it impossible to transport them to new homes upstate and in New Hampshire. more ›

Kensington Stables owner Walker Blankinship made a big stink about new regulations that would mandate he give his horses 5-weeks of vacation, as well as add bigger stalls and install a sprinkler system in his barn. He threatened to close his business, which offers $37 trail rides through Prospect Park, if he was made to follow the newly proposed rules. Now the Brooklyn Paper reports that the Board of Health has sided with him—they decided against changing the horse-boarding laws, thus allowing Kensington Stables to remain open, as is. more ›

The Kensington Stables owner, Walker Blankinship, is speaking out some more prior to finding out if his business will need to meet new regulations instituted by the Department of Health. The new rules may cost him too much money to keep horseback riding available in Prospect Park, and he recently told the NY Post, "If I have to go to box stalls, I have no intention of maintaining any horseback riding in Prospect Park. If I’m putting a two-foot-high pony in an eight-foot-high stall to appease animal rights activists, then I’m not wanted here. I’m going to leave.” Just like the new rules proposed for Central Park's carriage horses, other costly changes would include a sprinkler system and a 5-week vacation for horses. His fate will be sealed at a meeting in March, stay tuned... more ›

With the Health Department cracking down on the carriage horse industry, it seems stable horses are next on their list—if their proposed regulations go through, the animals may receive the same breaks animal rights activists have been fighting for. But one Brooklyn Stable owner tells the Daily News that if he has to give his horses 5-week vacations, bigger stalls and install a sprinkler system in his barn... it would break the bank. more ›

An administrator for the sandhog's union has been accused of heisting $42 million from the labor group — and spending a chunk of the cash on high-end horses, according to the Times. Melissa King, 58, is facing charges for allegedly exploiting her role overseeing benefits funds for the tunnel borers and using their money to pay for her lavish lifestyle and her youngest daughter's equestrian pursuits. more ›

With the new year, new rules will go into effect concerning the city's carriage horses. The rules were proposed by the Health Department yesterday, and according to the NY Post would include many regulations already imposed on taxi drivers. more ›

Recently Governor Paterson did an interview with Eccorazzi... in which he came out in support of a ban on horse-drawn carriages! He told the site: “These animals are kept in stables that are too small, often they’re cold, they work long hours and they don’t have time off. That might sound like we’re talking about human beings, but like you and me, animals need time to rest. These horses are abused and really shouldn’t be trotting around in congested areas.” more ›

It's a bad week for New York horse racing fans. First, cops nabbed an 18-year-old suspected of having sex with race horses at a Goshen track, now comes news that the Belmont Stakes might be called off because of the state's monetary woes. According to the Daily News, Governor Paterson and state legislators haven't been able to come to a consensus on a revitalization plan for the racetrack, which will run out of money "in the May-June timeframe," according Charles Hayward, president of the New York Racing Association. The race is scheduled for June 5. more ›

Cops caught an 18-year-old suspected of getting it on with horses at the Goshen Historic Track in Orange County. After a six-month sting, investigators used surveillance footage to nab Erick Rivera, who was hit with multiple charges for sexual misconduct with an animal and burglary at the Hudson Valley harness track. The teen allegedly left his rented room near the track and crept into the unlocked stables after midnight at least a dozen times. Officials became suspicious in July when "they found the fillies bridled and immobilized in their stalls during morning checks," according to the Daily News. Goshen Village Police Chief James Watt had this to say about the suspect, who is being held in lieu of $15,000 bail: "This guy makes Michael Vick look like a charter member of PETA."
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A plan to shut down a 45th Street stable to make room for affordable housing could put 32 carriage horses on the street — and 17 carriage drivers out of work. Horses in the Shamrock Stables might lose their only place to hit the hay (sorry) by December, when the animals and their drivers are booted from their city-owned building so the Department of Housing Preservation and Development can construct 1,300 units of affordable housing and 10,000 feet of retail space. more ›