Owner brings horse to public field for physical rehabilitation

Owner brings horse to public field for physical rehabilitation

2025-10-06

When a Hualien resident went to the Meilun Track Stadium to exercise recently, they were surprised to see a horse trotting on the field. After all, what are the chances of running into a horse while out for a jog? According to the owner, the horse was injured and needs to be rehabilitated, which is why they went to the field. But Meilun has posted a public notice saying that large animals are not allowed.

Reins in hand, the owner and his horse trot side by side through the field. The sight baffled local residents, as this isn’t a racecourse or a farm, but a sports field.

The brown horse is named Caramel. Due to an injury on its right foot, Caramel needed to rest for over a month. Now it’s starting rehabilitation, which is why the owner took it to the field.

Voice of Mr. Wang
Horse owner
Normally I would go to the beach, but the ground is more uneven there, which may not be so suitable for the early stages of rehabilitation. I was looking for a field with more even terrain, and thought of the Meilun track. I explored the field before taking it here.

The owner brought the horse here for rehab, but many Hualien residents of all ages come to the track to exercise every day. Some wondered if bringing a horse there is safe or even legal.

Yang Yueh-chin
Hualien sports health director
Unless it’s a service dog, which are generally permitted, other similar animals, including large animals like horses, require a formal application. They need to obtain approval from the Department of Education for the desired activities before we can allow them to take place.

Mr. Wang brought Caramel here for short-term rehabilitation exercises. They didn’t impact other people exercising or harm the field—staff even inspected the grass afterward to make sure. But for safety reasons, the stadium posted notices forbidding large animals such as horses and cows, and plans to increase patrols in the future.

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#horse #trackandfield #publicfield #rehabilitation #rehab #injury #horseinjury #safety #exercise #Hualien

美崙田徑場運動"遇見馬"? 飼主遛馬復健引惹議

2025-10-06

最近有花蓮民眾到"美崙田徑場"運動時，竟然看到有馬匹在草地跑步，忍不住驚呼，跑步還能遇到馬的機率能有多高。只是在操場遛馬可以嗎?引發外界疑慮。馬匹的飼主說，因為馬受傷，需要復健才會載到田徑場散步，但體育場已經貼出公告，禁止大型動物進入。

主人手中牽著繩索，棕色馬兒跟在一旁悠哉奔跑，不過這畫面卻讓現場民眾驚呼，因為，這裡不是賽場，也不是馬場，而是運動操場。

稀奇場面引發關注，原來這匹馬名叫焦糖，因為右前腳受傷，休養一個多月，最近開始復健，才被主人帶來田徑場。

[[聲源:馬飼主王先生]]
“一般我會到沙灘，沙灘它是比較不平的，那麼對牠腳的復健來說，剛開始的復健可能是不太適合的，我想說哪裡是有草皮，比較平坦的，想說美崙田徑場，那麼美崙田徑場在我去之前，我先探勘了”

為了馬匹找復健場地，主人還先去場勘，不過，美崙田徑場是花蓮市區重要運動場地，每天都有不少大人、老人小孩來跑步運動，遛馬行為是否合法，安全疑慮也引發質疑。

[[花蓮縣教育處體健科長陽岳瑾]]
“除非是導盲犬，原則上會准以允許，那其餘相關的類似動物，像這種大型的馬匹，需要透過相關的申請，也需要透過教育處這邊，相關的活動許可之後，我們才會允許他們相關的活動”

飼主利用載運車，把焦糖載到田徑場，只是讓馬兒短暫復健，沒有破壞場地或影響到其他人。事後管理人員，特別檢查草皮，也的確沒有被破壞。但為了安全考量，體育場已經貼出告示，禁止馬匹、牛隻等大型動物進場，未來也會加強巡邏勸導。

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I think we had this in the past, so it’s like a way to say goodbye to a memory.

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