Health officials confiscate 19 horses from arabbers

Baltimore officials confiscated 19 horses Tuesday owned by arabbers, the street vendors who sell produce from horse-drawn carts in the city, saying their animals were living in "unsafe and inhumane" conditions in tents under the Monroe Street bridge.

The horses were being taken to a farm in Howard County, officials said.

Three trailers from the Humane Society of the United States and a horse rescue organization lined up to take the horses from the facility at 650 S. Fulton Ave. in South Baltimore where they have been kept for the past two years, when the city closed the an arabber stable on Retreat Street. At that time, the city promised to help keep alive the a-rabber tradition, which has been a fixture on Baltimore streets since the 19th century.

The latest action comes after health inspectors last week found standing water, mud and unsanitary conditions in the stables. Animal control officers also found rat infestations, lack of proper bedding for the animals, trash and debris, officials said in a news release.

"Conditions at these stables are deplorable, leaving us little choice but to remove the animals," said interim health commissioner Olivia V. Farrow.

On Monday, city officials served a search warrant on the arabbers, citing violations of the health code for "unlicensed and unvaccinated animals."

Reggie Scriber, deputy commissioner of housing and community development, who was at the South Baltimore facility on Tuesday, said "the upkeep of the animals was deficient."

"We found animals laying in their own manure. It was time to make a determination," he added.

The arabbers, however, denied the health department's allegations.

"We have worked with what the city gave us," said Shawnta Chase, one of the horse owners. "The horses were properly vaccinated and we felt they were being kept well."

She added, "The horses were fed yesterday, but we couldn't get in to clean the stables after the search warrant was issued."

Today's action was the latest move in a long-standing controversy between city officials and arabbers over the care of the horses.

In 1998, the city closed a stable on Carlton Street, and a-rabbers and their supporters filed suit.

In August 2007, the city closed another a-rab stable on Retreat Street in West Baltimore that had housed 51 horses and ponies, noting structural problems and filth. The Maryland Jockey Club agreed to keep the animals temporarily beneath a tent at Pimlico Race Course, while city officials worked to find a permanent stable.

But after a few months, when the contract with the Jockey Club ended, the horses were moved yet again, to the tents erected on an empty lot under the Monroe Street bridge. City officials said the move would be temporary until a permanent location could be found.

City officials had talked about building a permanent stable on the site, but Scriber said city officials changed their minds because "inspections had shown the horses were not being kept properly."

He indicated, however, that the city would try to continue to work with the a-rabbers.

"This has been a long drawn-out process," Scriber said. "We have tried to come up with a plan that accommodates the needs of the a-rabs that have a long, proud entrepreneurial tradition in Baltimore. However, our main priority is the protection of the animals. The housing department will continue to work with them to remedy this situation."

Donald Savoy, 77, a Baltimore a-rab for 65 years and one of the horse's owners, said the city had failed to keep its promises to the arabbers. "Mayor Dixon promised me a stable and she's going back on her word," he said. "It's a hurtin' thing to me."

The closing of the tent stable leaves just two stables in the city, one at 1102 S. Carlton St. and the second in the first block of N. Bruce Street, housing a small number of a-rabber horses, according to Daniel Van Allen, president of the Arabbers Preservation Society.

"Humane societies don't think that any horses should still be working in cities," said Van Allen, who is also a board member of Arabber Heritage, another local group.

He said that with the closing of the stable tent on Tuesday, he would expect there to be only one or two wagons working in Baltimore.