Welfare of Cape Town cart horses improves

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(8 Mar 2020) LEAD IN:
Cart horses are a common sight of the streets of Cape Town where they are used to move waste materials to dump sites.
And thanks to legislation and the work of a non-profit organisation, the welfare of the animals has improved in recent years.
STORY-LINE:
Trotting along the streets amid the busy Cape Town traffic, they seem like a relic from a bygone era.
But around 250 cart horses work the city, making their owners a living by shifting waste materials.
Derrick Groottetjie, also known as Rasta, is one of the so-called 'carties' and sets off with his horse from Freedom Farm, an informal settlement near Cape Town international airport.
"I ask to take away people's rubbish such as furniture, any old clothes, broken things, washing machines, fridges, stoves," he explains.
"Sometimes I get nothing and go home with nothing, but I'll always have food for my horses so that they can eat in the evening."
Today, he's on the hunt for scrap metal which he will sell to scrap yards.
But he also makes a trip to the Cart Horse Protection Association.
This non-profit organisation provides subsidised feed, farrier and veterinarian services.
And Groottetjie is getting his horse shod.
It costs him the equivalent of a nominal $7 for four new horse shoes to be fitted - cheaper than what a commercial farrier would charge.
The association provides all basic vet services for free with more complex procedures at a flat rate of $7.
The organisation was founded in 1995 to improve the welfare of cart horses.
The beasts of burden were victims of apartheid's segregation policies when people of colour living in the city were moved far away from its food markets.
The result was seeking new recycling opportunities and a deterioration of horse welfare.
But since the Cart Horse Protection Association was established, the lives of Cape Town's horses have got better.
"When we first started, about 80 percent of the horses looked very skinny, they were abused, and they were overloaded," says Marike Kotze, from the Cart Horse Protection Association.
"Whereas nowadays we've actually reversed that statistic, so about 80 percent of the horses now look really well, they're well taken care of. Whereas about 20 percent we still see abuse problems, and we still see overloading problems."
The Cart Horse Protection Association played a prominent role in the 2012 bylaw that for the first time regulated cart horses.
Alderman Jean Pierre Smith, Cape Town Mayoral Committee member for Safety and Security, says those rules have been a game changer.
"The introduction of the animal bylaw created a whole range of regulation on the road and off the road, and, in terms of the welfare of the horses, that I think is in everybody's interest," he says.
Since 2012, all cart horses have needed to be licensed and registered.
Carts must be kept roadworthy, and the cart horse drivers must undergo a driving licence test.
Waleed Abdurahman is a safety officer with the Cart Horse Protection Association. He has city law enforcement powers.
"My job is to inspect those horses and the carts so they can be roadworthy for the public road. All cars that are on the public road are normally (treated) as a vehicle. So I need to check the wheels, the axle of the cart, and all these things attached to the cart," he explains.
At a Monte Vista suburb home, Groottetjie collects garden refuse, in return for a small fee.
Home owner Patty Maine is his customer today.
She approves of the condition of his animals.
Keeping the cultural heritage of cart horses alive doesn't have to be at the expense of the animals' welfare.
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Пікірлер: 8

@randybutler4772 22 күн бұрын

Very good progress. Making important improvements in animal health and welfare. Thank you for sharing. 🐴

@JoanBray-ow9tv 17 күн бұрын

I live in Parow. A lot of people complain about them. I feed a man with a dog on his cart. Always civil to me and first thing he brings,is his bucket for water. He feeds his horse,then I give him little odd jobs to do in my front garden, his dog gets fed on my veranda.There are a few in Parow who people complain about