Gold Leaf Carriage, identified by The North Carolina Beat, horse died, while transporting a casket at a funeral in Durham, North Carolina, on Saturday.
A video obtained by The North Carolina Beat shows Gold Leaf Carriage of Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina, transporting the body of 87-year-old Lizzie Bethenna (Cooper) Buie to her final resting place, which was contracted by Fisher Memorial Funeral Parlor.
The two-minute video shows the carriage headed down the street when one of the horses suddenly falls over.
Gold Leaf Carriage could be seen taking their precious time getting to the ill-fallen horse as he is in his final moments of life. His friend, beside him, watched him die in 95-degree weather.
WATCH THE VIDEO:
The North Carolina Beat contacted an angry Gold Leaf Carriage, who told us the horse died from a heart attack. We asked the unidentified representative if the heat led to the horse’s death, and he said, “No.”
Thoroughbreddailynews states, “exercise during extreme heat or other types of extreme stress can increase a horse’s risk for a fatal cardiac event.”
The unidentified representative told us that it was none of the people’s “damn business” what happened to that horse. He said a vet that came to the scene ruled a heart attack.
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I own horses, and we are all being told not to radars as the heat index is too high and it is not worth it. These horses were pulling a carriage up a hill. This is shameful.
If you look on Facebook, it was very young person that was driving the carriage, they didn’t jump down because they were old or because it took a long time or because they couldn’t do anything. It’s because they see these horses as a business and not as pets. Shameful.
Ride ours*
Ride ours* sorry typo
Absolutely agree! This happens all too often. So sad!
That is sick and inhumane. Why did a deceased person need a horse in 95 degree weather. When PETA gets wind of this they gone pay.
Real horse people don’t need the ignorance of PETA or people like yourself, making false/stupid accusations about something you know NOTHING about!
I’m so sorry you and your family had to experience that prayers for the family and the owners of the horse.
To the Gold Leaf family my heart goes out to you, I know what it is to loose someone, because that was my mother inside the carriage. I don’t blame your company in any way your horse are beautiful we spoke on the phone. prayers go out to you and your family on behalf of the Buie family. maybe some day I can visit and take pictures of your beautiful horses for my keep sake album. For mothers 88 birthday I like to have one of your horse at her final resting place. and let him release the ballons. Danita Buie
Please don’t release balloons, while it’s a nice gesture. They don’t go to heaven, they end up either in our oceans, or in a farmers pasture somewhere & an animal eats them, it gets tangled up in their intestines & the animal dies a long painful agonizing death. There are so many way to memorialize the losses of our loved ones, plant a tree, or a flower. I mean this with the utmost respect. I am sorry for the loss of your mother. Please accept my sincere condolences. ❤️
FYI horses don’t suffer heart attacks the way people do which is a blockage of plaque of the coronary artery (hence the saying I’m going to have a coronary). When horses have a heart attack their aorta (the largest artery in their body) ruptures. They bleed to death internally. So that horse was dying long before the video started and continued long after as horses can lose a massive amount of blood before they die.
That is entirely not true. A SMALL rupture can cause bleeding but it is extremely rare.
Sad situation, but this article is written to fuel flame. The implication of “taking their time” is unnecessary. Honestly what could they have done in the seconds before? It’s easy to watch in hindsight and say what should have been done but in the moment it takes time for our brain to catch our eyes. I know because I witnessed a tragedy and panicked so bad I called 911 and hung up. Stop so much observation beat down and offer kind words. I’m sure they were panicked and unsure of what was happening. Not to mention, the unpredictable nature of animals… I doubt they thought it would end as it did
People fail to realize this was devastating for everyone involved. I used this company for my mom’s service and the attention that they gave to their horses displayed nothing but care. Yes they took their time getting down because these are elderly Gentlemen, one step wrong and they would have been on the ground also not create haste and spook the other horse. As you see they did get down and attend to the fallen horse. No one knows if this would have happened at the stables or at work. Stop with the bashing and negative talks and pray for all that was there and involved. Animals have silent illnesses like humans that no one is aware of. Gold leaf and family my thoughts and prayers are extended to you both for comfort and peace. Difficult time for everyone.
That’s so sad 😞