A veterinarian hired by the industry group that promotes horse-drawn carriage rides through Central Park says the animals are healthy and well cared for.

The Horse and Carriage Association commissioned the evaluation by John Lowe, a former professor of veterinary medicine at Cornell University. He says the horses he visited at five New York City stables had shiny and had well-groomed coats, were in good health, and displayed no wounds or coughs.

Some critics have campaigned against the horse-drawn carriage industry and on Thursday dismissed the report as unconvincing. But the city has not supported their calls for a ban