So much sass.

Going on 3 years now! But thanks for your kind words!

Haha! Well to be honest we kinda did too.

Some people press it accidentally. Some people are assholes and press it because they don't like horses or they're bitter about not having a relationship and they're jealous of OP. Some people press it to get the YDI badge. There's tons of reasons.

There's also a big problem of horses being mistreated in horse-drawn carriages and the like, as well as it just not being very good for the horses to have to walk around the city all the time. It's pretty well-publicized, so arguably OP should have known about the abuse. I'm a bit surprised how many people on this thread haven't heard about it.

They deserve it for patronising a business that is harmful to animals.

Well 97, I know the guy that runs this park, and he is a good guy and cares for his animals like no one I know, he truly loves them. So I am not "patronizing a business harmful to animals" I knew this horse and he loved what he did. But he was 22. So thank you for your unneeded comment about something you knew nothing of.

I'm surprised a draft horse was still working at 22. They tend to die a bit earlier than most horses because they're so big. I could see a light carriage horse pulling gently at 22, but a clydesdale... he's an old man. I'm sure he loved his work, many work animals do (horses, sled dogs, etc...), but I think it's fair to say he should have been put to retirement at least a year ago. However, the concerns brought in by other commentators are absolutely spot on, in terms of how most 'rental rides' work. The horses are overworked, they pull too much weight and for too long, they're not always given enough food, the asphalt is horrible for their hooves and knees... it's pretty horrific.

Edit because I tried to edit my comment and time ran out before I could finish: I'm surprised a draft horse was still working at 22. They tend to die a bit earlier than most horses because they're so big. I could see a light carriage horse pulling gently at 22, but a clydesdale... he's an old man. I'm sure he loved his work, many work animals do (horses, sled dogs, etc...), but I think it's fair to say he should have been put to retirement at least a year ago. However, the concerns brought in by other commentators are absolutely spot on, in terms of how most 'rental rides' work. The horses are overworked, they pull too much weight and for too long, they're not always given enough food, the asphalt is horrible for their hooves and knees, many are locked in stalls when they're not working... it's pretty horrific. So everyone else's comments aren't "unneeded" and most of them actually do seem to know what they're talking about. Your friend might love his animals and take good care of them generally, I don't have all the details (do they go out to pasture? Does he work them on asphalt?) but it sounds like he wasn't familiar with how long draft horses tend to last work-wise. The average age that most draft horses I know are put down tend to be just after the 20-year mark (22 or 23, usually) and these are horses that did little more than light riding and spent most of their time as "herd educational management" (i.e: teaching foals to play nice.)