From: Ruth Vale <rmvale@watnow.uwaterloo.ca>
Subject: Sending a "history" with a horse at sale????
Organization: University of Waterloo
Date: Thu, 3 Sep 1992 13:23:41 GMT


This week, the local coronor convened a hearing into a buggy accident
which happened earlier this year, during which a buggy horse spooked
on the highway and smashed into a cement truck, killing the (human)
driver and injury its passenger.  There are about 1850 buggies on
the road in this area, almost all with Old Order Mennonite and Amish
handlers.  There are also many ridden horses which occasionally use
the road - hence the coronor's interest.

It was decided that given the statistics (which I can't remember
accurately but something like 10 accidents and 2 deaths in the last
five years) buggy travel is reasonably safe, but the jury came
up with some really good recommendations.

1.  The police and the Mennonite community need to work together
    to test buggy driver skills.  Children as young as 14yrs.
    drive these horses on the road without formal training of
    any kind.  I've seen pony carts piled with a half dozen
    kids trotting down the road.  The vast majority of buggy
    horses are safe and bombproof - trotting quietly beside
    a speeding 18 wheeler as if it wasn't there.

2.  Drivers of motor vehicles need to be educated on the 
    unpredictable nature of horses.  A pamphlet will be prepared
    and distributed with driver education materials.

3.  Warning signs are the highway ought to be enlarged and
    improved.  This is happening as the old ones wear out.
    The signs warn of roads which have heavy buggy use.

4.  Most of the buggy horses (90%) in the area are ex-race horses.
    A number of expert witnesses, trainers, etc. have convinced
    the coronor that Standardbreds are really the most suitable
    horse for what they do - they have both speed and sensibility
    although *any* horse may spook for unpredictable reasons.  The
    experts included a trainer who conditions horses from the
    speed spurts expected on the track to the very long distances
    covered at a trot by a buggy horse.  The jury recommended that
    any horse bought off the track not be taken into high traffic
    areas for at least two months after purchase.

5.  The jury recommended that the Min. of Transport improve highway
    conditions with buggy lanes and wider shoulders (which are
    already quite wide, but tend to get soft in the rain which
    we've had a *lot* of this year).

6.  The jury also recommended that any horse sold be accompanied
    by a "history" detailing the horse's training and temperament
    so that a potential buyer has some information by which to
    judge the likelihood of a problem in a highway situation.

This is the item that most concerns me.  I can see the potential 
interest for the buyer, but given the misrepresentation and down right
lying that is typical of the average horse trading transaction (at
least in my experience), what is the likelihood that a buyer will
be getting accurate information?  Also, most buggy horses are
bought quite inexpensively, often at the local auction house.  I can't
see these Mennonite farmers paying more than the minimum and the
thought that they might depend on these "histories" is terrifying.

The jury ruled out things like a decoupling device to free a
spooked horse from the buggy, and seat belts, as even more
dangerous than the existing situation.

Keep in mind that the buggy horses are part of an Old Order
and Amish lifestyle which brooks little interference from
the government or other outsiders.  Basically, the entire
community is living in the 17th century, although local
leaders have been exemplary in co-operating with their
more modern neighbours for decades.  Some individuals and
congregations are more adaptable than others but we can't
tell them to keep the buggies off the highway.  They pay taxes too
even though they do not normally take advantage of social
benefits of the same.  They prefer to be left alone.

During the accident that sparked the hearing, witnesses say that
the horse had spooked only five minutes before, was calmed down
and then spooked again.  The cement truck was passing, and a gravel
truck was coming the other way.  The driver of the cement truck
was commended on his attempts to avoid the accident (he was going
slow and trying to edge past).  The adult daughter of the victim
was driving the horse.  Her mother took the reins when the horse
started galloping down the highway and was standing in the buggy
putting all of her weight into the reins.  The buggy slammed
into the truck.  The horse was killed and the victim died of
head injuries.  The daughter is recovering.

The victim's last words:  "What made us think we could ever handle
this horse?"

Discussion?

Ruth