As a horse owner, I find it absolutely astounding that some can claim that using a horse for carriage rides on the streets of downtown Salt Lake City is abuse in some way. The attempt by some to correlate the sudden bout of colic suffered by Jerry the horse to the fact that he was pulling a carriage is without merit.
I find this logic similar to trying to make a correlation between someone dying of a heart attack while running and the conclusion that the rest of humanity should not run for exercise.
What is the alternative? Leaving a horse in a stall without exercise and without mental challenge or stimulation? I pray that forces from outside of the state are not given consideration in this matter and that knowledgeable voices are heard so that a horse can be used, of all things, to pull a carriage.
Kirt Peterson
Farmington