On April 19, 1997 my husband Ian and I were married in the very old little church in the heart of Metchosin. Between our ceremony and our home reception we had booked a carriage ride through James Bay and Beacon Hill Park.
It was a highlight of our wedding day. We arrived with an apple gift for the horse and were allowed to offer it to him.
We boarded our carriage with many tourists taking photos of us. Our driver was very friendly and professional, the horse who drew our carriage was named Macaroni I think he was called Mac for short.
He was a beautiful animal, no signs of lethargy or depression. In fact my husband recalls another horse carriage in front of us, a little slower, our driver took Mac into the left lane and we trotted past them. Mac’s whole body language was positive, like he really enjoyed it all.
This was a highlight of our wedding day. I work with dogs, and like dogs these horses if well cared for, enjoy the work they do.
I do not think horse drawn carriages in and around Victoria should be banned. Perhaps a few safety considerations could be addressed. We are not considering banning tour buses because they caused an incident with a horse drawn carriage. Let us all take a level headed approach to this issue and consider all involved. This is a job these horses were bred to do, it gives them purpose. If they are well cared for, and allowed to enjoy their time off, allow them to work.
Marjanna Wornell
Colwood