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14    S E P T E M B E R /O C T O B E R 2 0 2 0 | U N TAC K E D But in reality, most horses in the world live in vastly different circumstances than that, and they thrive. I've seen horses in the middle of New York City traffic, horses in Los Angeles, horses on top of arctic mountains getting pelted with rain and wind, horses in the desert without any grass, and many, many horses that live in stalls at competitions for months out of the year. They've mostly been in good weight, with shiny coats and calm demeanors—and almost all of them are cared for by people who value their wellbeing. There are even horses, as you'll see in Erin Harty's story about Baltimore's arabbers (p. 26), living on very small properties in the center of that major city. Erin, a longtime Baltimore resident, reported the story and was shocked to discover one of the arabber stables tucked into an alley less than a mile from where she lives. "It's just a neat reminder that there are lots of different ways to have horses, and that it's not all about expensive tack or showing or any of that," she says. The horses at the arabber stables live differently than show horses, but the general idea is the same. They're fed, watered, exercised, groomed, shod and given a little turnout. They have a job, but their job is delivering food—and now COVID-19 supplies—to residents nearby, instead of jumping fences or doing a dressage test. "My take on it may be different than some of the [other] animal welfare people," says Erin Ochoa, chief executive officer of Days End Farm Horse Rescue, who's helped arabbers improve horse care standards. "But I don't want to see horses just not have jobs in our culture, to sort of fade away and only be an item of luxury for those that can afford them." It may not be the way you or I are used to seeing horses live, but there's no doubt the horses in Baltimore are doing something vital, and that they're important to, and loved by, the people caring for them. And if you zoom in on my idyllic Northern Virginia scene, you might see those horses have some challenges too—flies, rain rot, summer heat and humidity, winter snowstorms—and I'm sure some horses would hate that situation, begging to come back inside to a bug-free stall. Nowhere is perfect. Horses—and humans—adapt to their situations. All we can do is try to give all horses the best level of care we can for the situation we have, no matter where in the world we are. —Lisa Slade EDITOR'S LETTER M A N Y WAYS TO K E E P H O R S E S W hen I imagine the perfect place for horses, I think of Northern Virginia, with its acres and acres of rolling green pastures dotted with trees, ponds and run-in sheds, divided by perfect wooden boards, where horses can live out in groups. ANDREW HOCK PHOTO

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