Dear editor:

As a visitor to your town I was very dismayed on Thursday, Sept. 7, to see two horse-drawn carriages out on the streets of Niagara-on-the-Lake, with passengers on board.

The day’s temperature was 28C (but it felt more like 37C), according to the Weather Network.

The horses being used in this manner is an unnecessarily heartless treatment of the animals.

Other cities and countries are phasing out this use and abuse of horses, and I would hope that Niagara-on-the-Lake would cease this as well. The sooner, the better.

That being said, in Winnipeg where I live, the humane society is very involved in educating the public about the welfare of all animals.

The organization recently has been particularly vocal about the mistreatment of horses (horse slaughter being a huge component).

With respect to the horse-drawn carriages in NOTL, it is a common practice to see used up horses ending up in auctions, sold to kill buyers and shipped live to Japan for slaughter.

Lois Isfjord
Winnipeg