Old-fashioned horse drawn carriages loaded up with sight-seers have been a standard part of the daily landscape in the heart of downtown Guadalajara since the dawn of the 20th century. But the sound of clip-clopping hooves mixed in with roaring car and bus motors was curiously absent from the city streets on August 20.
That was the day that 55 registered drivers of the emblematic calandrias and their faithful steeds converged on east side of the San Francisco Church adjacent to Avenida Corona to take advantage of cost-free veterinary services offered under the auspices of the University of Guadalajara (UDG) and the city’s Department of Animal Control.
A team of professors and advanced students from the UDG Division of Veterinary Medicine, led by equine specialist Ruben Anguiano Estrella, set up a mobile clinic in the confines of a large open-air patio where they attended to more than 100 horses in the space of five hours. Most carriage operators own two horses that are put to work on alternate days.
Each animal was put through a general medical check-up, with examination of limbs and hooves and a mouth and dental revision. Next came the application of a vaccine against influenza, a dose of worm medicine and treatment for any superficial wounds or minor ailments that were detected.
Horses in need of specialized medical care were referred for future appointments at the Centro Equino Los Alamitos where Anguiano operates a private horse care facility that doubles as a UDG teaching hospital.
For the crowd of by-standers who happened upon the massive veterinary house call, the most compelling episode of the day was the castration procedure practiced on Paco, a five-year old stallion owned by carriage driver Ricardo Aceves. After a shot of tranquilizer, the handsome gray was led onto a grassy patch of garden area and gently eased to the ground by a half dozen vets and horse hands. Following a thorough antiseptic cleansing of the animal’s private parts, Anguiano took hold of a scalpel and a large metal clamp, swiftly putting an end to its manhood and the frisky behavior prompted by mares in season.
The vet clinic it is only one facet of an on-going program initiated two years ago to improve the quality of life for work horses that endure a hard-scrap existence in the bustling metro area. Free medical care—repeated every six months—is offered not only to calandria drivers, but also to the owners of rental strings operating at the Los Colomos park and cachivacheros who rent out horse-drawn wagons for low cost hauling of household furnishings, refuse and other types of cargo.
The horse owners are also encouraged to attend periodic instructional seminars that delve into modern standards of proper feeding and preventive care for equines to enhance health and prolong life.
Guadalajara Animal Control handles logistics for these activities, while the UDG vet school provides staffing and medical supplies and the Mexican Association of Equine Practitioners lends support with free provision of vaccinations.
The vets have observed the health conditions of the majority of work horses steadily improve over time, indicating a significant pay off for their altruistic efforts.
In the long-run the program may help perpetuate the Tapatio calandria tradition that is slowly dying out after being handed down through many generations. According to Martin Rodriguez Esqueda, head of Guadalajara’s Union of Carriage Drivers, business has slacked off dramatically in recent years due to competition from the city’s line of bus tours.
The current going rate for calandria tours is 200 pesos for a 30 to 40 minute ride and 300 pesos for a full hour jaunt. Carriages have capacity for up to six passengers. Horse taxi stands are located outside the San Francisco Church, in front of the Regional Museum on Liceo near the back side of the Cathderal, and in the vicinity of the Libertad market just off Calzada Independencia.