There was very sad news recently about a person chasing her loose horses and accidentally getting hit by a car and killed. The horses were not injured in the incident. What a horrific thing to happen while trying to do the right thing for her animals.

A reflective vest can save lives in low-light situations.

Photo Courtesy Rebecca Gimenez

This is unfortunately the second case of this same scenario occurring in the United states this year, earlier in February 2013 in California another woman was killed while trying to catch her loose miniature horse.  Again, her miniature horse was not injured in the incident.

Where Do We Start with Prevention?



How Many Incidents Occur?

While the number of horses that get loose is unknown, from the number of reports to animal control organizations, there are many thousands that do end up out of their primary containment. We can also base our concerns on the number of horses that get killed by being hit by a car (four horses killed when hit by car) or that kill someone driving a car that hits them (man dies after hitting horse in Montana) each year.While there are no official numbers, the frequency of related news reports is astonishing to anyone who does a Google search.

It is obvious that we as an industry need to improve prevention of horses from escaping into the road, but first we have to admit that it could happen to any of us. It would be nice for someone in the industry to start keeping track of these reports as well.

Many people think of reflective wear when riding--it is important to wear reflective when you are riding in any urban environment as well. Others fail to see the importance. Based on the sad saga of one Midwestern man who was riding with a child and was killed in a hit and run incident without reflective, then four other people trying to assist on scene were hit by yet another vehicle, reflective could have prevented two incidents.

It Happens to All of Us


What is a Simple Solution?


