Despite a handful of concerns from residents and tourists to city officials, local veterinarians say the horses used to pull carriages around town are healthy and safe.

&uot;We have received a few complaints,&uot; Natchez Tourism Director Walter Tipton said. &uot;In a little over five years, probably not more than three complaints. The most recent one is concerning the heat in the summer.&uot;

Cindy Cochran, a Baton Rouge resident who just bought a house in Natchez, said she is behind several complaints to Natchez alderman about the effect of the heat on the horses.

&uot;I do a lot of work with the Humane Society, and my dad was a vet,&uot; Cochran said. &uot;Every time we drive by it makes me so sad to see the horses standing out in the heat.&uot;

Dr. Byron Garrity, a Natchez veterinarian who at one time treated the horses, said he felt the public had a misconception about the care of the horses.

&uot;Heat is a factor in our part of the country,&uot; Garrity said. &uot;For dogs and cats as well as horses, but these animals were raised in our climate and are more acclimated. I’m not defending the fact that it is hot, but I think the guys are taking good care of the horses.&uot;

Garrity said the breeds of horses used to pull the carriages are cold-blooded animals and therefore generate less heat. Quarter horses and racehorses are hot blooded and would have problems with the heat, he said.

&uot;Draft animals are accustomed to hard work for long periods of time,&uot; Garrity said. &uot;Their systems are developed to retain moisture.&uot;

Dr. Debbie Guillory, a Vidalia veterinarian who has treated several of the carriage horses, agreed with Garrity.

&uot;Horses that are from this area are acclimated to 80-105 degrees,&uot; Guillory said. &uot;You’ll see horses grazing in the sun on the side of the road.&uot;

Mike Folds, owner of the Magnolia Carriage Company, said his horses only stand in the direct sunlight for about an hour and half before they are taken out of it. At the horses’ stable, Folds said most of the horses choose to stand out in the sun instead of under the barn most of the day anyway.

Folds’ company owns five horses that he rotates in and out of work. Natchez also has another carriage company, Southern Carriage Tours which has 13 horses.

Southern Carriage Tours owner George Vines also said the heat was not a serious threat to the animals.

&uot;Horses live outside,&uot; he said. &uot;If they aren’t on the road in the sun they are in the pasture in the sun. I’ve done this since 1987 and I haven’t ever had a horse die of heat stroke.&uot;

Folds said he only uses the horses that are able to handle all the conditions of pulling carriages, including heat, traffic and noise.

&uot;A lot we bring out here we never give the first turn,&uot; Folds said. &uot;If they are not going to be safe, they don’t stay.&uot;

He said nearly all the horses are from Mississippi and have been used for some type of farm work before. Most are around 7 or 8 years old.

&uot;They are hard to come by,&uot; Folds said. &uot;So once you get a good one you want to take good care of it, especially the medical part.&uot;

If a local vet can’t treat a problem in the animals, they are taken to the LSU veterinarian center, Folds said.

Guillory said she was confident the horses receive top care.

&uot;They are not just looked at as objects,&uot; she said. &uot;They are attached to them, they are pets. And they make a living with them.&uot;

The Humane Society of the United States does have printed guidelines for horse drawn carriages, including a ban on working the animals in temperatures higher than 90, but the guidelines are not enforced in Natchez.

The Natchez Board of Alderman has a horse carriage ordinance, but none of the rules apply to the horses, only the drivers.

Alderman David Massey, who has been on the board for more than 16 years, said the health of the horses was something that he has given thought to in the past.

&uot;When I ride by there I think about it,&uot; Massey said. &uot;But I feel like from what the horse owners told us the type of horses they had could withstand the southern heat. We took them for their word, and hopefully they are right.&uot;

Massey said he wouldn’t be opposed to examining the issue again.

Cochran said the issue was something she planned to pursue further. She said she has already talked to her alderman who suggested writing a letter to several city officials. Cochran said she has considered speaking at an alderman meeting and forming a committee to investigate the safety of the horses.

Garrity and Guillory said the size of the horses was appropriate for the weight they pull. The carriage companies have eight and six passenger carriages, but Folds said most of the horses were capable of pulling both.

&uot;I’ve never seen one with a joint problem,&uot; Guillory said. &uot;I don’t see any different problems in them than I see for any other equine. Those guys do preventative maintenance on these horses.&uot;

Folds said he has had &uot;a good many&uot; horses in his 18 years with the carriage company and they do get ill, but most live a long time.

&uot;It’s never a question of being overworked,&uot; Folds said. &uot;They do get sick or injured, but these horses can hurt themselves in the barn.&uot;

Several other towns also have horse drawn carriage businesses, including New Orleans and Charleston, S.C. In 1994, Biloxi, however, banned the business before it ever started in that city for horse safety reasons and traffic problems. The ordinance is still on the books in the city.

&uot;There’s an argument for everything,&uot; Guillory said. &uot;Animal rights is a real touchy subject. I don’t know who is really right. I might be biased in the other direction.&uot;