If you’ve ever walked around a big city or even some small tourist towns before, you may have seen horses pulling a carriage with people in it. Horses are pretty awesome animals—they’re strong, smart, and loving. But do you know what’s not awesome? Horses suffer when they’re used to pull carriages. Here are eight reasons why horse-drawn carriages are wrong:

1. Horses used to pull carriages are forced to work in all kinds of weather conditions.

This includes the freezing cold and stifling heat. Some horses have even died from heatstroke.

2. Because they are sometimes forced to work in big cities and breathe in exhaust fumes, horses used in this way can get very sick and have problems with their lungs.

3. They’re forced to work in busy places like New Orleans and Charleston, even though it can cause them a lot of stress.

Horses are extremely sensitive to loud noises and unexpected sounds. They don’t belong on city streets.

4. They’re forced to walk on hard pavement many hours a day, and because of this, they often have serious leg problems.

5. Humans have also been injured because of horse-drawn carriages.

In 2014 in Dallas, Texas, two passengers were hurt when they were thrown from a carriage after the horse who was pulling it got spooked by a car horn.

6. Lots of horse-drawn carriages have been hit by cars.

In 2014 in Chicago, Illinois, at least five people, including four kids, were hurt when an SUV rear-ended a horse-drawn carriage. The driver was also thrown from the cart.

7. Many horses are killed when they become too old and tired to pull the carriages.

They are often turned into dog food or sold to other countries, where humans eat them. Yuck!

8. Horses aren’t protected by the Animal Welfare Act.

This means that local animal-control officials are in charge of keeping them safe. But many of them don’t have the time to watch the horse-drawn carriages to make sure that the horses are being treated well.

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Want to help these wonderful animals? You can! Never ride in a horse-drawn carriage—and tell your friends and family why they shouldn’t, either.