Horseback riding in the City

**Thruster315** · September-11-11, 01:42 AM

This might seem like an odd topic to broach but a buddy of mine and I were discussing what are the possibilities of ordinary citizens riding horses in the inner city.

Is there some ordinance against it? I know years back the City had officers on horseback patrolling the streets and I thought it was great for everyone around; better police visibility, great PR, and it did a cool thing for the neighborhood's sense of security. But what about ordinary residents?

In the last few years I've noticed more and more cyclists buzzing about the midtown and downtown streets and I applaud that. It's green, saves fuel, great exercise and a phenomenal way to see the city. But back to our equine friends... is it even possible for someone to have a stable, keep a horse, and just use it for a daily commute? Sure sure, I get the fact that you'd have to tie the horse up once you got to your destination. And there'd still be some logical restrictions such as horse and rider galloping down the Lodge Freeway or the Davison. But why not down Woodward, Gratiot or Grand River??

I know we were heavy into a few beers and had a few laughs about things like who'd clean up the horse poop, horse thieves, license plates, riding at night and some other absolutely ridiculous things about how in so many ways Detroit's like the old west- but realistically, what is the feasibility of common folk having horses and using them in the city?

Thoughts?

**Roq** · September-11-11, 04:54 AM

Originally Posted by Thruster315

This might seem like an odd topic to broach but a buddy of mine and I were discussing what are the possibilities of ordinary citizens riding horses in the inner city.
Thoughts?

I saw a mounted officer a few weeks ago at Eastern Market so there are a few out there. I think it's an excellent idea for certain areas of the City -- downtown, Eastern Market, Dequindre Cut..etc..

**gazhekwe** · September-11-11, 07:39 AM

There are even places to keep a horse, vacant land, I mean. Trouble is, if you wanted to stop somewhere, what would you do with the horse? Yes, there used to be hitching posts and water troughs, but now? Also, there is a safety factor for the horse. I was thinking about it recently, too. We'd need livery stables maybe. Each central business retail area could have a livery stable to care for the horses while the owners are working, shopping or imbibing.

**DetroitPlanner** · September-11-11, 07:52 AM

Asking the Buffalo Soldiers in Rouge Park would be your best bet.
http://www.buffalosoldierscalicotroops.com/about.html

This is an amazing group that teaches children about horses and history.

**One Shot** · September-11-11, 09:43 AM

Some old houses still have carriage houses behind them! I think the idea is cool. Honestly though how much would one spend on horse care vs. car ownership. Probably still cheaper but I'm sure horse food/health care isn't cheap.

**msamslex** · September-11-11, 10:16 AM

Originally Posted by DetroitPlanner

Asking the Buffalo Soldiers in Rouge Park would be your best bet.
http://www.buffalosoldierscalicotroops.com/about.html

This is an amazing group that teaches children about horses and history.

I take the kids at a day camp I help out with every year for a horseback ride and a history lesson. They have a small museum inside the stable and a volunteer tells about the history of the Buffalo Soldiers. Horseback rides are offered for group tours and individuals for a small fee. Picnic tables and the playground are nearby. The kids really enjoy the horseback rides and look forward to going each year. Volunteers and donations are always welcome. The stable is on Joy Rd. just past Spinoza, in the old Detroit Mounted Police stable. Rouge Park. Can't miss it.

**Thruster315** · September-11-11, 10:18 AM

Originally Posted by gazhekwe

There are even places to keep a horse, vacant land, I mean. Trouble is, if you wanted to stop somewhere, what would you do with the horse? Yes, there used to be hitching posts and water troughs, but now? Also, there is a safety factor for the horse. I was thinking about it recently, too. We'd need livery stables maybe. Each central business retail area could have a livery stable to care for the horses while the owners are working, shopping or imbibing.

These were the exact queries we were talking about. There is a logistical aspect to having a horse in a truly urban environment. My friend [[over a few Molsons) suggested why not just put the horse in a parking space? Have a handful of quarters and tie them up to the meter. Dedicated stables would actually be the best solution or if any one of the various parking lots downtown would have a "equine only" area- that'd even be better!

**Thruster315** · September-11-11, 10:22 AM

Originally Posted by One Shot

Some old houses still have carriage houses behind them! I think the idea is cool. Honestly though how much would one spend on horse care vs. car ownership. Probably still cheaper but I'm sure horse food/health care isn't cheap.

Neither my friend and I are horse owners so we couldn't even hazard a guess on the costs of owning a horse but one aspect we did discuss was the longevity of a car as opposed to a horse. I'm sure insurance companies would have a small say into what it would cost to have a horse in the City as well. Would those costs be cheaper than theft, fire & collision?

Again, all of this is pie-in-the-sky speculative banter at best but maybe there is a germ of brilliance in this idea? Maybe??

**MidTownMs** · September-11-11, 10:35 AM

Would the owners be able to buy horse food with their Bridge cards?

**East Detroit** · September-11-11, 12:41 PM

Originally Posted by MidTownMs

Would the owners be able to buy horse food with their Bridge cards?

Maybe they could work something out for you.

**MidTownMs** · September-11-11, 01:26 PM

Originally Posted by East Detroit

Maybe they could work something out for you.

I don't qualify for a Bridge card. Yet.

**Thruster315** · September-11-11, 01:47 PM

Originally Posted by MidTownMs

Would the owners be able to buy horse food with their Bridge cards?

We could also let the horses help with the grass cutting issues in town.

**wolverine** · September-11-11, 02:34 PM

It's something you really don't see much except for mounted police, but I can't imagine it's explicitly banned. I do know there all laws where I live regarding responsibilities of having a horse on public streets which include.

Removal of horse dropping immediately
Disinfecting streets with a special soap and water mixture
Regulations on where you can keep horses hitched up while your away.

Few people want to deal with these which is why I never see people riding horseback. Plus there's been lawsuits of horses being spooked by traffic and causing a commotion.

While the laws are geared towards citizens, the mounted police are required to obey them as well, and they have always been good at it, and have been a wonderful asset in maintaining order in busy places.

I think it's a great idea in Detroit with all the vacant land available and areas practically turned back to prairie. It's similar in places to a country setting. But riding around downtown on horseback has me concerned. There are many documented incidents of these animals getting scared. To me, it's unfair for any large animal to be in a dense urban environment unless they've been trained and adapted.

**RO_Resident** · September-11-11, 03:14 PM

From Municode for Detroit:

Sec. 40-1-18. - Riding of horses; dogs to be on leashes.

No person shall ride upon any horse unless the animal is equipped with a saddle. Riding horses shall not be driven on or ridden upon any roadway set aside for motor vehicle traffic, nor upon any footpath or trail set aside for pedestrians or bicyclists. Riding across lawns, fields or gardens in any park or playground is strictly forbidden; provided, that this regulation shall not apply to any mounted police officer engaged in performing his regular duty. No dogs shall be permitted within the confines of any park, playground or public place, unless such dogs shall be attached to a leash not to exceed six [[6) feet in length; such leash to be of sufficient strength to hold such animal in constant check. Tying animals by a leash which exceeds six [[6) feet in length to any tree, shrub, structure or other fixture or thing is strictly forbidden.

I have a few friends that have horses. Plus, I spent a couple of summers on Mackinac Island. Horses are a lot of work.

**BrushStart** · September-11-11, 03:16 PM

Well, just last night I saw a Central Park-style horse and carriage pulling a some people down Beaubien. So, I guess it is possible...

**MidTownMs** · September-11-11, 04:50 PM

Originally Posted by BrushStart

Well, just last night I saw a Central Park-style horse and carriage pulling a some people down Beaubien. So, I guess it is possible...

There's a guy who has a white horse and carriage that he rents out for weddings...I saw him in a parade a couple of weeks ago.

**gazhekwe** · September-11-11, 05:15 PM

One of my neighbors was trying to establish a carriage business a few years back. He moved, so I don't know how he is doing with it. He had a white carriage and I think bay horses.

**internet_pseudopod** · September-11-11, 05:40 PM

I heard a rumor from a friend a few years back that someone in Boston-Edison has a horse and occasionally rides it though the neighborhood. I drive though BE all the time and I have never seen it, but that is what I heard. Also, there is a small farmers market on Livernois and the Lodge service drive and from time to time they will have a couple of horses there.

**yaktown** · September-11-11, 09:07 PM

Originally Posted by msamslex

I take the kids at a day camp I help out with every year for a horseback ride and a history lesson. They have a small museum inside the stable and a volunteer tells about the history of the Buffalo Soldiers. Horseback rides are offered for group tours and individuals for a small fee. Picnic tables and the playground are nearby. The kids really enjoy the horseback rides and look forward to going each year. Volunteers and donations are always welcome. The stable is on Joy Rd. just past Spinoza, in the old Detroit Mounted Police stable. Rouge Park. Can't miss it.

I just drove by that horse stable today in fact! I was looking for the house my mom grew up in [[Burt Rd just north of Joy) and continued home westerly down Joy. Never realized that used to be the DPD Mounted Division. Been years since I was over that way. Maybe next time I'll stop in for a visit.

**grumpyoldlady** · September-11-11, 10:36 PM

Horses to be ridden in the city would need special training to deal with the traffic, auto horns, gunshots, shouting and other distractions so that they wouldn't bolt and run. I would think there would be a problem with the "deposits" left on the streets by the horses. Don't think the riders would want to stop and poop scoop every time the horse finished digesting a meal. I don't know what the DPD mounted division does about this...probably nothing. I recall piles on Woodward and on Bethune when they had a stable there.

**DetroitHabitater** · September-11-11, 10:59 PM

People don't pay much attention to those dog rules either. I have my dog restrained on a six ft leash, get yours under control.

**professorscott** · September-11-11, 11:04 PM

Some of you know not of which you speak. A horse rider or horse-drawn carriage is a vehicle permitted upon roadways in Michigan, except for limited-access highways. From the Motor Vehicle Code:

257.69. Traffic. "Traffic" means pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, street cars and other conveyances either singly or together while using any highway for purposes of travel.

Then later in the same law:

257.604. Riders of animals and drivers of animal-drawn vehicles, application of chapter

A person riding an animal or driving an animal-drawn vehicle upon a roadway shall be granted all of the rights and shall be subject to all the duties, criminal penalties, and civil sanctions applicable to the driver of a vehicle by this chapter, except those provisions of this chapter which by their very nature may not have application.

**riviera** · September-12-11, 01:55 AM

I remember at one stage reading about and seeing pictures of the ghetto kids in urban Philadelphia riding horses around, they just tied them up at the back of their houses.

I'm sure in some of the less populated areas, horse droppings etc would not add to blight. This would be viable as it has been done in other cities in the U.S.

**smogboy** · September-12-11, 08:54 AM

There would be something kind of cool seeing a small group of people riding horseback in on their early morning commute coming down Woodward Avenue or any one of the other major thoroughfares in the city. Or if someone was really ambitious come up with a covered wagon of sorts and offer up a "carpool" of sorts. In essence it'd be the greenest light rail system in the nation!

**mercyme** · September-12-11, 09:45 AM

Average cost of keeping a horse per month:
Hay $22
Feed $60.00
Of course, this varies on the part of the country you live in but I imagine it would ring pretty true in Detroit.

Feet trimmed/shod $25-$100 every six to eight weeks
Yearly shots $50-$75
yearly Dental Care $100

Start up costs.....fencing, shelter, blankets for the winter, bug spray [[for the horse), saddle and other tack, brushes, hoof pick, the list goes on and on...