Horse fatalities are a rising concern among the equestrian community. The accidents aren’t just witnessed on the racetracks but also outside of the sporting community. The domesticated and working equines are a huge part of their owners’ lives but some are bound to confront their unfortunate fate of negligence. Speaking of such occurrences, Graves County, residing in the Kentucky province, home to the prestigious stakes, stood witness to a near-fatal accident on Friday.

The recent misfortune left the equestrian world shaken with the concerning details. The county, home to about 2000 equines and over 500 equine operations, reported an accident involving the majestic creature and humans. However following the news, the stakeholders breathed a sigh of relief as no lethal consequences were reported. 

Graves County Witnessed Unexpected Encounter

On Friday, September 15th, two vehicles were involved in a crash accident. While one of them was a Ford minivan, the other involved was revealed to be a horse and buggy. According to a release from the Graves Co. Sheriff’s Office, the former was run by 51-year-old Luis Jeronimo of Pryorsburg, and the latter was in possession of 34-year-old Enos Hershberger of Wingo.

As per the reports, the buggy was illuminated with flashing lights and reflective tape, but Jeronimo failed to see its presence. The unfortunate inability of Jeronimo resulted in the collision; impacting the rear end of the buggy and leaving it torn down. Further, the impact forced Hershberger onto the roadway altering the County Sherrif’s office.

The two of the involved parties were then rushed to the Jackson Purchase Medical Center Emergency Room. Fortunately, none incurred any life-threatening injuries. While the authorities made a rush for treatment, the equine was nowhere to be seen. However, to the enthusiasts’ relief, further reports revealed that the equine had made an escape following the crash. The police later found the horse safe, two miles from the scene of the accident.

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The occurrence as it was, wasn’t the only recently reported accident involving an equine. The continued circumstances have gained the attention of the established equestrian organizations.

Equestrian Community Chime in For Equine Welfare

Equines are a majestic group of creatures devoted to their riders and enthusiasts. Nevertheless, the athletic animals aren’t always confined to a safe environment. There are an indefinite number of unconscious and conscious negligence reports filed every year. While some are plain malpractices, others require a pointing direction. The issue has thus called upon several organizations to act on the prevailing issue.

Standing up for the equine welfare and pushing forth its initiatives towards the protection of the horses, one of the associations is AAEP; the American Association of Equine Practitioners. The organization works to provide assistance to both charities and individuals. The association has pushed initiatives including the Unwanted Horse Coalition and the Racing Medication & Testing Consortium. AAEP strongly stands by its motto, “To protect the health and welfare of the horse,” and works to prevent abuse and negligence of the animals.

Another organization, ASPCApro works to provide training, and resources to welfare professionals and aims to focus on three of its priorities; finding homes for horses, keeping them safe, and responding to cruelty. The organization whilst providing adoption assistance has also established programs and equine support centers.

While negligence can be avoided, accidents at times cannot. In either of the cases, a noticeable hint would require assisted services for the helpless creatures. The provided circumstances further necessitate the enthusiasts to keep an eye open for the charitable communities and organizations.

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