Ooty reins in stray horse menace

Ooty: Cops joined hands with officials to check stray horse menace in this hill centre as stringent action, including issue of license to horses are underway.

These horses are the lifeline for many a tourism stakeholders drawn from poor families as they are being used for rides in select tourist spots to earn a good revenue to sustain their livelihood.

But, unfortunately, those who owned those horses and ponies failed to control movement of these animals as stray horses and ponies regularly frequent arterial roads in the town thus causing infringement to moto-rists as well as pedestrians.
Also, these stray horses would gather around garbage bins and pull out the garbage and other wastes vitiating the environs around.

While the announcement made by the municipal administration about issuing license for the horses being used for rides, in order to demarcate the animals being used for rides identify stray horses, failed to yield desired results, municipal officials with the help of cops devised another strategy.

They informed all horse owners to bring their animals to the ground in Kandal area.  With help of animal handlers they have sh-ifted the horses found straying into town limits to Kandal grounds on Wednesday.

Then they started issuing licence to owners of those horses and ponies being used for rides by collecting a fee of Rs 500.

C. Ravi, the commissioner in-charge of the Ooty municipality,  said that after issuing licences to horses at Kandal grounds, unclaimed horses and ponies will be shifted to animal shelter. He hoped that this action would help check straying of the animal.