NEW ORLEANS — Every year Krewes bands and performers march throughout the city during Carnival. But there are others who also roll and add a special touch to the parades, horses.
Many of the parade horses are held at Cascade Stables, but they don’t live in New Orleans year-round. Cascade stables often buy horses for Carnival and rent them out to Krewes. But after Mardi Gras, the horse's futures would often be uncertain.
“They bring in horses from a horse broker, they stay here during the parade and if it wasn’t for us they’d get sent back to the broker and resold probably at auction and possibly for slaughter,” Jeff Dorson, Director of the Humane Society of Louisiana said.
Cascade Stables trainer and riding instructor, Avery Scheurich says they, unfortunately, don’t have the space and money to keep all the horses every year.
“It’s hard for us obviously if we could keep all of them all the time absolutely we would,” Scheurich said.
But since 2017, the horses are now taken care of and adopted into loving homes after Mardi Gras. Through interviews and background checks the Humane Society of Louisiana and Cascade have been able to get over 70 horses into safe environments.
“We want to find all these horses good homes and get them in a better situation than what they were before,” Scheurich said.
Dorson says it’s the least we can do for the horses who help us bring Mardi Gras to life every year.
“We thought since they made us feel happy and part of our carnival season, we owed it to these wonderful creates to ensure they have a good future,” Dorson said.
About 15 horses are up for adoption this year. They range from $600 to $1,000. If you’re interested in buying a carnival horse you can find more information on the Humane Society’s Facebook page.
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