back to article Burger-rage horse dumps on McDonald's: Rider saddled with fat fine

A Greater Manchester woman has found to her cost that if you turn up on horseback to a McDonald's drive-through window and are refused service, it's probably unwise to then lead your mount into the restaurant and let it crap on the floor. The unnamed horse-lover rolled up to the fast food outlet on Bury New Road, Whitefield, …

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  1. Chairo

    Does anyone know

    why they have a problem with serving people on horseback or 2 wheelers? It sounds like some really artificial rule...

    And what about customers, riding a quad or a trike?

    1. Rampant Spaniel

      Re: Does anyone know

      I haven't a clue as to why, perhaps someone fell over and was crushed under their harley once and there was a lawsuit. I was refused service at a drive though on my bike (just wanted a drink as it was a hot day). Odd but not a problem, other companies don't have an issue with it.

    2. Jim 40
      Happy

      Re: Does anyone know

      It might be thanks to Mark Thomas from way back.

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71-h9A2XvWo

      An amusing video where Mark trys to buy stuff from McDonalds via a variety of transport modes.

      1. Frankee Llonnygog

        Re: Does anyone know

        Time for Series 2 - taking different animals to have a crap in MacDonalds. "Sorry - where does it say no dugongs?"

    3. Oliver Mayes

      Re: Does anyone know

      It's so they don't get run over.

      Pedestrians in the US have walked through, been hit by cars, then sued the restaurant for not warning them.

    4. TeeCee Gold badge
      Facepalm

      Re: Does anyone know

      I'm guessing some "elf 'n safety" paranoia about possible liability when car meets cycle / horse / whatever in the queue.

    5. Natalie Gritpants

      Re: Does anyone know

      It's called a drive through and is designed for cars. It's intended for you to collect your food and drive off. It's not safe to hand over a collection of burgers in bags and drinks to a cyclist or motorcyclist. It may be safe but it's not economic to serve just one fruit smoothie to a cyclist when you could be serving burgers and fries to whole family.

      Sorry to sound grumpy but winging about not being able to use the drive through lane with your dog sled is just the kind of lazy self-entitled attitude I expect from a MacD' customer, not a noble commentard.

      As for the nutter taking a horse inside, she should have had a fine for cruelty to the horse and reckless endangerment of the people inside. Humans and frightened horses do not mix.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Does anyone know

        Quote

        It's not safe to hand over a collection of burgers in bags and drinks to a cyclist or motorcyclist. It may be safe but it's not economic to serve just one fruit smoothie to a cyclist when you could be serving burgers and fries to whole family.

        How do you know that it is not safe? Have you done a safety assessment?

        Do they really refuse to serve a single item? So someone buying a single 'Big Mac' should be turned away?

        That is the 'pot-luck' situation. not everyone is buying a load of <redacted> for a whole family.

        It sure sounds like you work for McD's....

        I'm proud to say that I have only once tasted an item on their menu. It was so bad that after one mouthful, it went into the nearest bin. Since then, I have never felt the need to visit them again and if I have anything to say about it, I never will in this life.

        1. JC_

          @AC

          It's not safe to hand over a collection of burgers in bags and drinks to a cyclist or motorcyclist. ... How do you know that it is not safe? Have you done a safety assessment?

          As a motorcyclist & cyclist I can assure you that it's not safe to ride while holding onto anything but the handlebars. One-handed riding simply isn't stable. Toll booth tickets, boarding passes etc. are a pain to deal with, let alone a bag of chips and greaseburgers.

          Yeah, a tankbag can mitigate this but I think it's a fair policy; the rider has to get off to eat/drink what they bought, after all, so they might as well do it before buying their food.

          Horses - large and panicky animals - in an enclosed drive through? Absolutely stupid.

          1. Frankee Llonnygog

            Re: I can assure you that it's not safe to ride while holding onto anything but the handlebars

            You could wear a nosebag

          2. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: @AC

            I'm a motorcyclist too, and I agree it's not safe to ride while holding a Big MAC (etc).

            It's equally unsafe when some frickin' moron tries to drive a car while stuffing their face with stuff just served to them by a MacDonalds drive-thru.

            As a motorcyclist, I'm only to well aware how easy it seems to be to distract people (supposedly) driving cars from looking out of the big window at the front and taking notice of what they see...

            Bloody drive-thrus should be banned full stop. If people want to eat while on a journey, they should damn well park, get out of the vehicle, sit at a table and eat.

          3. Stoneshop
            FAIL

            Re: @AC

            As a motorcyclist & cyclist I can assure you that it's not safe to ride while holding onto anything but the handlebars

            Cycling: I can hold a bag and have both hands on the handlebar by simply gripping the bag and the bar together. It's perfectly doable for just about anyone over the distance you have to cover to get out of the drive-through. Once out of it you may want to put it in a messenger bag, backpack or pannier, eat the contents or fling them against the service window as an act of protest, but at no point is it even remotely unsafe.

            Motorcycling: put the bag between your legs, pull out of the drive-through, and proceed as above. In my case I could simply open the topcase and ask the service window person to put the bag in there. Which I have done at a not-McD drive-through.

            1. Stoneshop
              Mushroom

              Re: @AC

              Apparently, judging by the time the downvotes started, the US contingent with their "bikes are dangerous and irresponsible period" have started to notice this thread.

          4. Irongut

            Re: @AC

            "As a motorcyclist & cyclist I can assure you that it's not safe to ride while holding onto anything but the handlebars."

            As a motorcyclist & cyclist I can assure you that I have carried cargo and been perfectly safe. There are these things called ruck sacks, tank bags, panniers and even top boxes (shudder).

            "the rider has to get off to eat/drink what they bought, after all, so they might as well do it before buying their food"

            What if they want to grab a burger on the way home after a night shift? McD's door is closed but the drive through is open, rider has a ruck sack or other vessel for safe carriage of cargo and they plan to eat at home. What then smart arse?

            1. ShadowedOne
              Thumb Down

              Re: @AC

              If you put it into a ruck sack, tank bag, etc. then you are not holding it, are you? I'd say his intended point still stands, would you like to willfully misconstrue things some more?

              1. Stoneshop
                FAIL

                Re: @AC

                you put it into a ruck sack, tank bag, etc. then you are not holding it,

                This is about getting a burger or something from a McD's Drive-through. Whether you move away from the window holding the bag in your hand, between your teeth or jammed between your arse and the saddle is not the point, but apparently some people want to assume you can only do the first, and base their condemnation of one's action on that assumption, considering it unsafe (which it's not).

        2. Paul Westerman
          Windows

          Re: Does anyone know

          "I'm proud to say that I have only once tasted an item on their menu. It was so bad that after one mouthful, it went into the nearest bin. Since then, I have never felt the need to visit them again and if I have anything to say about it, I never will in this life."

          Blimey, talk about being on one's high horse.

          Try a Big Mac, they're nice :oP

          1. croc

            Re: Does anyone know

            Uh... No thanks. I've seen how that 'special sauce' is made.

          2. Stoneshop
            Coat

            Re: Does anyone know

            one's high horse

            That's a horse doing horse?

            1. Anonymous Coward 15

              Re: Does anyone know

              Would they serve someone with a horse and cart?

      2. Rampant Spaniel

        Re: Does anyone know

        Who was whining?? I merely stated an observation. I apologize for not ordering as much as your obsesness does.

      3. Dodgy Geezer Silver badge
        Boffin

        Re: Does anyone know

        ...It's called a drive through and is designed for cars. It's intended for you to collect your food and drive off. It's not safe to hand over a collection of burgers in bags and drinks to a cyclist or motorcyclist. ...

        It's not that difficult to look up their policies on this issue. They have gathered a number of criticisms, as several of their restaurants partly close at certain times and ONLY serve through the drive-in window at that point. If you try to obtain a burger while on foot at these restaurants you will be refused - you have to have a motor vehicle in order to obtain a burger!

        The reasoning given by McDonalds is that the 'drive-in' section is designed for road-users and has no pavement. Therefore any non-road-user is at risk when using it. They interpret this to mean 'motor vehicles' - motor-cyclists and moped users will be served, but cyclists and, we have now found, horse-riders will not.

        These rules are not completely logical. A cyclist is (if behaving properly) a safe road user, and should be as safe on a roadway as a moped rider. But cyclists are not served, while mopeds are. I think that it may be reasonable to refuse horses - the drive-in road could be restricted, and if a horse is spooked while in this constrained area it might cause damage or injury to itself or others.

        1. Stoneshop
          FAIL

          Re: Does anyone know

          They interpret this to mean 'motor vehicles' - motor-cyclists and moped users will be served,

          Not so.

          1. Danny 14

            Re: Does anyone know

            pillion passengers can hold onto an item. although pillion passengers must use the footrests there is nothing about what they do with their hands.

        2. Lloyd
          Stop

          Re: Does anyone know

          "If you try to obtain a burger while on foot at these restaurants you will be refused - you have to have a motor vehicle in order to obtain a burger!"

          Incorrect, I have been served as a pedestrian at the McDonalds drive through window of the McDonalds in Wandsworth after a large number of alcoholic beverages in a nearby drinking establishment (the Ship) when the main restaurant has been closed, I'm not proud of the fact but in fairness I was drunk, as was everyone else in the queue (yes, there's always a queue of drunk people when the pub shuts).

      4. Stoneshop
        FAIL

        Re: Does anyone know

        It's not safe to hand over a collection of burgers in bags and drinks to a cyclist or motorcyclist

        And it's not safe either to hand a cup of hot coffee to a driver who might dump it in his/her lap while driving off.

        I've been refused service in a McD's drive-through while riding a SIDECAR motorcycle, so no risk of tipping over, ample place to put the bag anywhere SAFE instead of in my lap, and all this is perfectly obvious to anyone but the most moronic of burger-flippers.

      5. Goldmember

        Re: Does anyone know

        "it's not economic to serve just one fruit smoothie to a cyclist when you could be serving burgers and fries to whole family."

        I go to McDonald's drivethrough every morning on my own, in my car, and I buy only a coffee. Not once have I been refused service due to economics.

      6. Irongut

        Re: Does anyone know

        "It's not safe to hand over a collection of burgers in bags and drinks to a cyclist or motorcyclist."

        Says who? If I turn up on a motorbike and order a double cheese burger and chips, no drink, and put it in a ruck sack how is that any less safe than you ordering whatever in your car?

        Sorry to sound grumpy but your I'm alright Jack, screw you comment is just the kind of lazy self-entitled attitude I expect from a MacD' customer, not a noble commentard.

    6. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Does anyone know

      I guess the horse decided that they needed some extra burger sauce.....

    7. S4qFBxkFFg
      Go

      Re: Does anyone know

      A flashmob of motorised unicycles at this particular McD's would be a glorious sight.

      With all the riders ordering one each of the cheapest thing on the menu.

      1. Ru

        Re: Does anyone know

        A flashmob of motorised unicycles at this particular McD's would be a glorious sight

        Its the poor schmoe behind the window I feel sorry for. I don't believe that independence of thought and action are encouraged at that level of employment. Be entertaining to see how well the manager handles it, mind you.

    8. Andrew Moore

      Re: Does anyone know

      once, while stateside, a nice cop let me sit in the back of his black and white and order. For some unknown reason you can only order at drive-thru's after a certain time.

    9. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Does anyone know

      Never been stuck behind a cyclist for miles on the way home after a long day? Never been hit by them, and / or nearly hit by them?

      Ever been stuck trying to get past a line of horses, only to get scowled out for 'scaring them' at 2mph by an over-privileged and under-clued? Do any get walked past your house, only to relieve their considerable bowel at exactly the same point, leaving a pyramid of faecal matter that then gets skidded on and splatted everywhere by innocent drivers coming around the corner?

      Thought not.

      Cyclists and horses are at best a serious inconvenience on the road, and at normal times a downright menace to their own safety and that of others.

      I applaud McD's (no, really) for saying 'no, this is a DRIVE through'. Clue's on the tin, dim-bulbs.

      1. Stoneshop
        FAIL

        Re: Does anyone know

        Never been stuck behind a cyclist for miles on the way home after a long day? Never been hit by them, and / or nearly hit by them?

        And this is relevant regarding what happens in a McD's drive-through, where things proceed at a pace not faster than the capability of the burger-flippers to hand out their wares to the consumers in the driveway, exactly how?

      2. Nuke
        FAIL

        @AC 15:10 - Re: Does anyone know

        Wrote :- "Never been stuck behind a cyclist for miles on the way home after a long day?"

        No.

        " Never been hit by them, and / or nearly hit by them?"

        No, but have been hit by cars both when on a bike and in my own car

        "Ever been stuck trying to get past a line of horses,"

        Sometimes.

        Cars were nearly banned when they were first invented because they were such a danger and nuisance to most other road users - who were walking, cycling or using horses. Here is the order of grandfather rights on the road :-

        1) Pedestrians

        2) Horses

        3) Pedal Bikes

        4) Cars

        5) Motor bikes

        So in a 60" wide car you complain about being held up by a 20" wide bike or 24" wide horse. Whose fault is that? You should think about getting a narrower motor vehicle (clue - they are called M*t*rb*k*s).

        "Cyclists and horses are at best a serious inconvenience on the road, and at normal times a downright menace to their own safety and that of others."

        You could substitute the word "cars" in there and it would still be true. I'd like to ban all cars except mine, it would be far safer and more convenient for me. Unfortunately we all have to share.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Horses and Burgers don't mix

    1. Thorne

      Tesco begs to differ....

      1. Chika
        Trollface

        Look at my horse! My horse is amazing! Give it a lick...

        I findus this comment distasteful!

  3. LarsG

    And no one filmed the incident?

    What is the world coming to?

    1. Sir Barry

      No video, but the Daily Fail has some crappy photos....

      http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2373248/Woman-takes-horse-inside-McDonalds-Whitefield-defecates-floor.html

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    McDonalds Have A Point

    It's distressing for customers to see the McDonalds 'raw' product on the hoof.

    1. CmdrX3

      That's a bit unfair

      They are one of the few to be cleared of having any Shergar burgers in their supply.

      1. Rampant Spaniel

        Re: That's a bit unfair

        Aye, horse would be far superior!

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: That's a bit unfair

        "They are one of the few to be cleared of having any Shergar burgers in their supply."

        Is that because they analysed the total meat content of a McD's burger and got the result "insufficient sample size"?

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Have a heart

    It was just trying to find its mum...

  6. Evil Auditor Silver badge

    Bringing a horse in McDonalds

    ...a woman allowed her pony to enter our restaurant... This woman should be convicted for cruelty to animals!

    On a different note I wonder how many horses already ended up in McDonalds. Dead, I mean.

  7. Sampler

    I've been served at the drive-thru on my bicycle before but also refused at a different "restaurant" so it seems to be a poorly implemented policy. When cycling through France I was once asked to take my bike outside the store too.

    Though I suppose you have to be a special type of retard to think taking a horse in is a good idea.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Though I suppose you have to be a special type of retard to think taking a horse in is a good idea.

      I suspect that the drive-thru person told her that "we won't serve you here you'll have to go into the main restaurant" and in a moment of bloodymindedness in the face of such "health'n'safety" excuses decided to do just that.

      Anyway, I'm hoping that the HSE will come along soon and do one of their regular "its not our fault" bits and point out how McDs could serve non-drivers in the drive-thru lane.

  8. frank ly

    It's not all that bad

    I've mucked out stables and shovelled fresh horse droppings and it's not that bad really. Perhaps the 'obvious distress' was at seeing a horse being brought into the restaurant, leading to an understandable assumption that it was destined for the kitchen. Ahhhh, ..... burgers.

    1. Code Monkey
      Trollface

      Re: It's not all that bad

      Fresher than their usual burgers, then.

      1. pepper

        Re: It's not all that bad

        I agree with, cow or horse dung isnt that badly smelling. I find human and dog excrement much les favoured by my smelling senses.

  9. Shagbag

    caused obvious distress and upset to customers trying to eat

    WTF?

    Do they know what they're eating? Pink slime, white slime, whatever you want to call it. A colon is still "100% beef" as long as it comes from a cow.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      @Shagbag

      "Do they know what they're eating? Pink slime, white slime, whatever you want to call it."

      "McDonald's,[96] Burger King and Taco Bell announced they would discontinue the use of BPI products in their food.[97] Wendy's ran full-page advertisements in eight major newspapers (including The New York Times, USA Today, and the Los Angeles Times), stating that it has never used the product. A Wendy's spokesperson told Reuters news agency, "We have never used lean finely textured beef (pink slime) because it doesn't meet our high quality standards."[77][98] Five Guys confirmed that "We do not have pink slime in our ground beef. We use 80/20 ground chuck. Our manufactures [sic] do not use ammoniated procedures."[99] Red Robin stated that it has "never purchased or served beef containing the so-called 'pink slime.'"[65]"

      [96]Matthew Rosenbaum, McDonald's Announces End to 'Pink Slime' in Burgers (February 1, 2012).

      (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pink_slime)

      1. Rampant Spaniel

        Re: @Shagbag

        At which point it was re-branded "enriched, decontaminated, textually enhanced beef" and buying recommenced. Or perhaps I'm just a little too cynical.

    2. Michael Strorm Silver badge

      Re: caused obvious distress and upset to customers trying to eat

      Shagbag: "A colon is still "100% beef" as long as it comes from a cow.".

      Pink slime (i.e. low-quality connective tissue that's been highly processed and antibacterially treated) isn't legal for human consumption (*)- let alone allowed to be called "beef" (**)- within the EU. That includes the UK, where this incident took place.

      (For that reason the US disclaimers are also irrelevant. Aside from the fact that policies often vary in different markets and wouldn't necessarily apply to the EU, they would never have been able to (legally) use pink slime here in the first place).

      (*) Whereas in the US they're allowed to include up to 15% pink slime and still call it "ground beef" (their name for "minced beef").

      (**) Before American law was changed to make it explicitly legal, one microbiologist in the US Department of Agriculture had apparently stated that "I do not consider the stuff to be ground beef, and I consider allowing it in ground beef to be a form of fraudulent labeling" and that that such connective tissue is not even "meat".

      1. Danny 14

        Re: caused obvious distress and upset to customers trying to eat

        they are made from real meat in scunthorpe factory.

  10. Captain DaFt

    >one steaming pile of Mc-road apples on floor<

    cashier: "You want flies with that?"

    1. andreas koch
      Joke

      @ Captain DaFt

      That's just razy lacism.

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Maccies plus horse = pikey for sure.

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Eh?

    Don't serve pedestrians???

    Cyclists????

    Why not??

    Mr MacDonald, give me ONE valid reason why that is..

    And your company being awkward isn't valid.

    Glad I stopped eating the shit years ago...

    On a secondary note, bet that horse has disappeared only to return in between a bread cake with gherkin...

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Eh?

      >Don't serve pedestrians???

      >Cyclists????

      >Why not??

      Wonder if anyone has done DNA test on the patties for Pedestrian, Cyclist etc?

    2. Dan 37

      Re: Eh?

      "give me ONE valid reason why that is"

      erm.. lets see..

      for pedestrians - it's a narrow, winding lane wrapped tight around the building, where drivers are not expecting to see pedestrians. They should be going slow, but pedestrians shouldn't be there.

      also for pedestrians - if you're on foot, go inside and join the queue like everyone else. If the drive through lane is empty then the drive through attendant may be helping fulfill orders placed at the counter. Therefore if you walk up to the drive through and get served then you are essentially queue jumping.

      for cyclists - your hands are on the handle bars right? both of them? then how are you holding the fucking mcdonalds anyway. (I know in a car the driver should have hands on the wheel but the passengers can eat, or the driver can put his bag of food on the passenger seat until he gets to wherever he wants to stop and eat). p.s. saw a cyclist soar through a red light at a junction of probably the 3rd and 4th busiest roads in my town - both hands busy eating a bag of crisps. Things like this give me homicidal urges.

      1. Stoneshop
        Facepalm

        Re: Eh?

        p.s. saw a cyclist soar through a red light at a junction of probably the 3rd and 4th busiest roads in my town - both hands busy eating a bag of crisps. Things like this give me homicidal urges

        Why? If he manages to evade Darwin, I see no reason to override that. If he doesn't, well, problem solved anyway.

        1. Dan 37

          Re: Eh?

          The problem isn't so much his own darwinism, but the danger he poses to other road users. Can't count the times we've had near misses between daughter's push chair and cyclists on pedestrian crossings because so many cyclists are fuckwits that don't know what red lights are for (for the fella that complained about my homicidal urges - don't like it, don't pose a danger to my family). And yes, I'm aware many drivers are also fuckwits.

      2. Alan_Peery
        Thumb Down

        Re: Eh?

        > Things like this give me homicidal urges.

        Then see a psychologist - seriously. What you said isn't funny.

      3. Peter Simpson 1
        WTF?

        Re: Eh?

        "for pedestrians - it's a narrow, winding lane wrapped tight around the building, where drivers are not expecting to see pedestrians. They should be going slow, but pedestrians shouldn't be there."

        Maybe they've figured it out by now, but the geniuses that designed the McD's restaurants near me (are they all built to the same standard plan?) thought it would be a good idea to put the entrance door right in front of the drive up window...so people coming from the parking lot walk right in front of the punters picking up their bags of goodies, while checking to see if they got enough ketchup packets as they hit the gas...

        1. Dan 37

          Re: Eh?

          i think we have the same set of geniuses at our lacal McD's. Pedestrians entering from the car park cross the entrance to the drive through lane, pedestrians from the street side cross the exit from the drive through lane.

          I guess the pedestrians crossing the road at least have the option of paying attention to traffic whereas the guy being served at the drive through counter wouldn't notice a car approaching as he will be lost in thought over that deep philisophical conundrun: would you like to 'go large'?

    3. Charles Manning

      Re: Eh?

      This is the drive through....

      All sorts of liability issues if a pedestrian/cyclist gets crushed by a car.

      Add lawyers and common sense goes AWOL.

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "The unnamed horse-lover rolled up…"

    Rolled up? Was the horse wearing rollerskates?

    1. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge

      Of course not. Any self-respecting horse wears in-line skates. What do you think this is, the 70s?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Even that conjures up a scary thought!

  14. ChrisM

    Didn't Mark Thomas take a flatbed lorry (complete with performing rockband) through a McD's drive-through?

    It was about 15-20 years ago and as I am on my mobile a youtube search is out!

    1. Haku

      Yep, he certainly did, along with some other crazy antics, very funny to watch:

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXjTkwOJQyw

    2. Stoneshop
      Go

      Top Gear as well

      using a Marauder.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDoRmT0iRic

    3. George Nacht
      Happy

      Never saw Mr.Thomas,

      but you do not have to go so far in the past. Richard Hammond, when testing South African Marauder, did very interesting things in drive through (and elsewhere). Pulling the bag through the gun-port was funny, too.

      On the other hand, for a love of God I can´t remember whether it was McDonalds or otherwise...

  15. Denarius
    Happy

    please let that be a tank

    and the natural lineas the turret turns to face the order windows... Go on, make my day

  16. Charles Manning

    Supersized

    I hope it was.

  17. Haku

    "unable to serve pedestrians, bicycle riders or customers on horseback"

    It's almost like they only want the lazy patrons...

    I can't suggest cyclists organise a mass descent on drive-thru's to try and get them to change their mind because if it worked then the remaining few healthy people we still have in this country would be encouraged to eat that slop - just imagine the advertising campaigns.

  18. Parax

    McDonalds has beef with horse

    (That's nicked from the internet)

  19. wowfood

    Damn horses

    Just a random note of dislike.

    I like horses, they're nice animals, they can be sweet and they're fun to ride.

    I do not like the fact taht, where I work, there is somebody nearby who has a horse (there's about 4 of them actually)

    There are three walking routes around where I work which I can go along for lunch. One is a large pedestrian / cycling path... painted with horse shit.

    The other is a small lane which takes you round the back of the industrial estate... coated in horse shit.

    The third route takes you past a school.... I'd rather not go past a school at lunch time, pedonoia.

    Now, we have strict cleanups laws for dogs, you aren't meant to let your dog shit wherever, and if it does you're meant to clean it up. So why can a horse, who can spread their shit over the width of a pavement, whos shit smells far worse, be allowed to crap wherever and have no penalty to the rider. They should have to clean up after their horse the same way I do my dog.

    1. S4qFBxkFFg

      Re: Damn horses

      Herbivore/Carnivore distinction, AFAIK herbivore crap is less dangerous than carnivore crap due to less parasites. It's also more useful for crop fertilisation if you're trying for the various organic certifications.

      Mind you, my source on this is some guy who worked on a farm for a bit, so take it as you will.

      (On an unrelated note, it's a lot easier to get off shoes.)

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Damn horses

        "AFAIK herbivore crap is less dangerous than carnivore crap due to less parasites"

        It's 'fewer' not 'less'

    2. John H Woods Silver badge

      Re: Damn horses

      I completely agree that pedestrian walkways and cycle paths should not have so much horseshit on them that you cannot easily walk or cycle on them - which is what you appear to be suggesting. But it's difficult to take that seriously if you think horse shit is more offensive than dog shit - surely you can't be serious?

      A person riding a horse, although they should avoid areas where droppings will cause a problem, can absolutely not be expected to clean up! What do you suggest ... get off, scoop it into a giant rucksack and get back on? A reasonable size horse drops several kg per hour, cannot safely be expected to stand quietly unless tied - and also may not be that easy to get back on if you aren't near a mounting block.

      If you have a problem with the horses producing the "obstacles", have a word with the riders about taking a different route. Suggesting they poop-scoop (except within about 50m of the yard gates) is likely to fall on deaf ears, for a very good reason.

      1. dorsetknob
        Trollface

        Re: Damn horses

        if you see a Mcdonalds on the hoof taking a Dump then photograph the event

        make sure to contact your Local council so they can take action under the usual ANTI LITTER BY-LAWS

        if they can fine a smoker for dropping a butt or a child for dropping a sweet wrapper then they can fine the rider for letting his Burger take a dump in Public and (maybe prosecute for indecent exposure as well)

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Damn horses

        Horse can not be riden or even walk on a ffottpath, therefore they are commiting an offence. However, they can be taken / riden on cycle routes.

        Just saying

    3. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
      Paris Hilton

      Re: Damn horses

      > pedonoia

      "Pedonoia represents the child state of Mind and the first child-like thoughts and child-models of information"

      What?

    4. Bleu
      Headmaster

      Re: Damn horses

      Understand, the point, but you must be joking. Dogshit, while less noisome than that of some humans (presumably living on rancid fat, meat, and sugar, thus leaving a toilet smelling like they dropped a dead rat from the arse) has a revolting stench and, unlike humans, many have moronic bipedal owners who get their jollies from encouraging their pet to crap anywhere and sniggering at the thought of the poor bastard who'll later step in it.

      Cat is revolting, too, although many cat owners appear to love it, but that is only a problem if you visit one of the many cat lovers who enjoy the stench of catshit.

      Horse is quite tolerable.

    5. Kubla Cant
      Unhappy

      Re: Damn horses

      I too find it annoying to have to dodge horse shit when I'm on a cycle track. I find myself wondering whether this is a result of the disdain that the equestrian classes have always felt for everybody else (but that's just the sort of mad idea that results from cycling too fast).

      In the Swiss ski resort of Zermatt there are lots of horses that pull sleighs and carriages around the village. These are all fitted with a large bag to catch the droppings. It looks pretty stupid, and there's something depressingly Swiss about it, but it keeps the streets cleaner. If the equestrians don't care for this solution, then they should be obliged to find an alternative solution. It wouldn't kill them to get off their high horses and shovel it up. It might be a suitable repayment for the elaborate consideration that equestrians expect from other road users.

    6. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Damn horses

      Personally, I think you're just talking crap.

      Perhaps alternate routes are an option, but you typically don't ride your dog around town now do you? Not unless it's a very big dog. (and you're equally very small)

  20. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge

    Horselover Fat?

    I'm sure there is a possibility to bring up VALIS but I can't find it.

    1. Bleu
      Headmaster

      Re: Horselover Fat?

      Can't see a VALIS connection, but re. the Damn Horses thread, the part (and scene in the great movie) of A Scanner Darkly where Barris feeds Arctor worse than usual substance D (because cut with something else nasty), after having sabotaged Arctor's car is relevant.

      Arctor opens the bonnet and smells dogshit.

      Lord, I hate dog owners who leave the crap from their pets all over the place, evidently sniggering at the thought of someone later stepping in it, they so closely resemble the arseholes who plant chewed chewing gum on public transport seats.

      Catshit also has a seriously horrid stench, but the patterns of the 'domestic' cat are such that one only has to suffer that stench when visitlng one of the many cat lovers who appear to enjoy livlng in a miasma of cat excreta.

      Horses are quite tolerable on those terms, being in a stable or even mucking out are not stomach-churning experiences.

  21. Purlieu

    Walk Thru

    Do they still have McD walk thru's in London, they certainly did in the 90's

  22. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    It probably wanted a family reunion.

  23. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    tank + McDonald's drive-through

    well it not a chieftain tank but a scimitar tank(?)

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0oM8G8LVbo

  24. Matt_payne666

    Its my restarant... Its my rules...

    It doesn't matter how logical, sane, or bonkers the rules are, you have to put up with them if you want to use the service...

    They could decide that on Tuesdays only people wearing top hats can be served at the counter... makes no sense... but that's the joys of owning your own establishment - its yours... so your rules... don't like them - go elsewhere...

    as for taking a horse into the restaurant... that is really bad manners and shows a total lack of respect for the restaurant, staff, punters and most importantly - the horse...

  25. adminspotting

    "motor vehicle"

    If I owned one, I'd be tempted to take a steam traction engine (which is not a "motor vehicle") to the local drive-thru[sic] and see what they say...

  26. NomNomNom

    Wow

    dozens of comments but no-one has raised the obvious issue that even if Mcdonalds did serve horses how would the horse ask what it wanted or pay for the food?? think people are overlooking the primary problem!

    1. Bleu
      Pint

      Re: Wow

      The horse learnt to do that through long viewing and careful study of an ancient television documentary called Mister Ed.

  27. Nigel Brown

    Forget H&S, policies, road laws, etc

    There's a thing called common decency, and to let a shit machine into somewhere where people are eating goes way beyond that.

    Vile woman.

    1. Lamont Cranston

      Re: Forget H&S, policies, road laws, etc

      She did try to obtain her for without walking her horse into the establishment, but they refused to serve her. Non-violent protest is a good thing, and if brief proximity to horse shit is going to upset your tummy, might I suggest that you refrain from leaving the house, let alone eating at McDonalds?

      1. pepper

        Re: Forget H&S, policies, road laws, etc

        Its more like driving your car through the front facade after you had been refused service at the drive through(for whatever reason). Or a cyclist going straight in for the very same reason.

        Surely dropping faeces in a restaurant is a bad show and shows a sure lack of reasoning and manner? And that is even not taking into account the health risks posed by poo on the floor of a dinner establishment.

      2. DavCrav

        Re: Forget H&S, policies, road laws, etc

        "She did try to obtain her for without walking her horse into the establishment, but they refused to serve her. Non-violent protest is a good thing, and if brief proximity to horse shit is going to upset your tummy, might I suggest that you refrain from leaving the house, let alone eating at McDonalds?"

        Are you an idiot? A horse crapping all over a restaurant is insanitary. It's so blindingly obviously a stupid thing to do, and you don't see it, that maybe you and she should be friends.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Forget H&S, policies, road laws, etc

          "A horse crapping all over a restaurant is insanitary. It's so blindingly obviously a stupid thing to do, and you don't see it, that maybe you and she should be friends."

          I'm not sure that applies here. In order for McD's to qualify as a restaurant, you'd have to be able to classify the crap they serve as food - a questionable proposition at best.

    2. Bleu
      Gimp

      Re: Forget H&S, policies, road laws, etc

      Agree, she was most impolite, one may suspect an overdose of entitlement, booze, or both.

      That said, who are you to refer to the noble horse as a 'shit machine'? Unless you're from an evil (and impossibly energy-guzzling) future and on a hunt for Sarah Connor, how are you any less of a shit machine than a horse?

      1. Shrimpling

        Re: Forget H&S, policies, road laws, etc

        Unlike a horse I am house trained and know where not to shit.

        I think that makes me less of a shit machine than a horse.

  28. mantavani
    IT Angle

    @S4qFBxkFFg is pretty much right. There's quite a good chance of dog faeces carrying Toxocara canis which is a non-trivial risk to human health. Whereas being the product of an herbivorous digestive system, horse poop is basically pure fertilizer and the only parasite risk is to other horses.

  29. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    What about powered chairs?

    All the way from Aberdeen we have

    McDonalds

    https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=383236568465684

    and a bit later the same day at KFC

    https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=383249271797747

  30. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Blimey....

    Lets get some thing straight shall we.

    1. Clue in the name: Drive Thru.

    Not ride thru, not walk thru, not hop thru. DRIVE thru.

    2. Health and saftey. What happens when someone get impatiant (you'e typical 17 year old biy racer having to wait 30 second, with the music blaring out) and hit the horn. Horse bolts. It happens and ask anyone that has been thrown or hit by a horse to find out the injuries you will receive (and good chance the horse will be seriously injured).

    Bikes / Motorobikes. As pointed out, how are you going to carry the items? On handed on a bike / motorbike? Well if you do, then it sums you intellegence up. Pedestrians, there is no foot patch and it usually goes straight onto a car park or road and if on foot, go inside you dick. Leaving bike outside. Well lets see, it most likely got mud and dog shit on the wheels and take up a fair amount of space, can block exits etc. if you that worried, there is a thing called a LOCK. Buy a decent one and use it.

    3. And most important. It's their store, they have 100% right to refuse service, unless it breaks the equality laws, and as of yet, horses do not meet this criteria.

    4. Lastly why are we even defending an idiot that rides a horse in a drive thru, then lets it shit inside a food outlet?

    1. Stoneshop
      FAIL

      Re: Blimey....

      Bikes / Motorobikes. As pointed out, how are you going to carry the items? On handed on a bike / motorbike? Well if you do, then it sums you intellegence up.

      Yours, rather. It's been mentioned already that it can be done, and how to do it properly ANDsafely.

    2. Bleu
      Headmaster

      Re: Blimey....

      Lets get some thing straight shall we.

      OIC, an authority.

      thru

      Alright, you are spelling-challenged.

      saftey

      Is that Old Scots? What does it mean?

      impatiant

      Can't work that out either.

      Lots of apostrophe fuckups, many others too.

      If you want to write long and lecturing posts, I suggest a spell of remedial language study.

  31. AbelSoul

    In the words of Keith Hunt...

    No manners but what a critic!

  32. J0015

    Video as requested

    Mark Thomas "did" Mcdonalds with a tank in his C4 TV programs (I think it was in the 80's or 90's).

    http://youtu.be/71-h9A2XvWo

  33. theblackhand

    Was she arrested?

    You can still be done DIC on a horse...

    You mean she was sober? In a McDonalds? Really? People eat that stuff when they're sober?

  34. Lamont Cranston

    Must be fairly new rule,

    as my better half used to take her horse through the drive-thru. Friends of mine used to go through on skateboards, too - they'd be told it wasn't allowed, but be served, regardless.

    1. Stoneshop
      Holmes

      Re: Must be fairly new rule,

      Nope, goes back to 1998[1] at least, because I ran afoul of it when I had just gotten my sidecar rig. And McD franchises are insuficiently independent that they can set such a rule individually, if they can think one up in the first place.

      [1] so that's been 15 years without McD "food". Can't say I miss it.

  35. Tom 11

    BMX Bandit

    Up until about 4 years ago I used to ride my BMX to work at a BT ops center for shifts at bridge command, much easier to take shortcuts on a bike you can throw around, plus, at 'lunch' time (4am), the nearby skatepark in town was deserted, so fun was to be had.

    If I was on the 7am to 7pm shift then I'd get breakfast on the way to work, if on the 7pm to 7am I'd get it on the way home. Never once was I not served and I think I became a bit of a fixture for the staff as I'd get the odd freebe thrown in if they were quiet. This rule must be a recent thing.

  36. Cheese on Toast

    As a McDonalds employee....

    I would love too see someone come though the drive-thru in a tank... or a amphibious car.... is the bat-mobile too much of a push? Someone make this happen!

  37. b0hem1us

    whitecastle drivethru is tank friendly

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvkLaa9bogU&feature=c4-overview-vl&list=PL464777C5BB9401C2

  38. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Mischief? No.....

    A reader of a particularly mischeivous mindset might even email a certain television motoring show and ask whether you can drive a tank through a McDonalds drive thru..... (of course, such a reader would also link to the article)

  39. Mike Taylor
    Stop

    Horse shit smells much nicer than burgers. Anyone in MuckyD's clearly has malfunctioning olfactory organs in any case. I see no problem.

  40. Vimes

    Anybody remember this?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXjTkwOJQyw

  41. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Policy, what policy?

    I've been refused service at a McDonalds drive through (sorry, I'm British - it's not "thru" or any other varient!) because I was in a small white van and it's "against policy to serve anyone not in a car", despite them being the only place open at the time of night I was trying to visit (the main diner bit was closed) on my way back to base having not eaten all day.

    I'm pretty sure McDonalds' employees make the rules up as they go along.

  42. Anonymous Coward
    Devil

    yet another assault on Democracy ..

    How did it come to this, that you can't bring your horse into a McDonald's, yet another example of the erosion of Democracy and our civil rights ..

  43. Andy Fletcher

    My son works at McDonalds

    Customer asked him (with a manager in earshot) whether horsemeat had been found in the burgers. He (quite honestly I thought) replied "Not yet". The manager was a tad upset about it.

  44. sonic

    A few years back, I was out of town with my dog, and we walked through the drive-through section of Coventry McDonalds. It was quiet, and there were no cars in the queue, so that might explain it.... The reason for doing so, was that, I assumed, the dog wouldn't be welcome in the restaurant.

    .

    The next night we visited a chip shop, and the server was happy to take the order and money through the door.

    Malcolm

  45. JDX Gold badge

    Jeez

    All you bike riders (what a surprise, cyclists being jerks) - just walk into the bloody shop. If you have a horse, tie it up outside.

    If your local store only serves drive-thru at certain times, get there when it's open.

    And stop expecting a burger-flipper to disregard the training they've been given and the rules they have to follow, to risk losing their job just so you can eat a crap burger.

  46. Dave 32

    Interesting comments, but maybe I can shed some enlightenment.

    Note that most drive-through order systems require some way of sensing that a car is present (else the order taker has to listen constantly to noise in their headset). That may be via a magnetic loop sensor in the pavement. These are notorious for not sensing smaller vehicles, such as bicycles, motorcycles, and horses, as well as pedestrians.

    As for taking a horse inside a McDonalds, there are usually (health department) restrictions that only service animals may enter. However, horses can be service animals!

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guide_horse

    Dave

    P.S. I'll get my coat, it's the western style duster, with big pockets that I can fill with burgers while riding my horse.

  47. heyrick Silver badge

    I used to go through the drive through on a bicycle. But this was back in '93 when there was still a modicum of sanity kicking around. For the people who say it is unsafe, what's so unsafe about putting it in a backpack and then going home? What the hell do you think I'd do if I went inside and ordered take away? Or are the McEmployees supposed to act as nannies now and tell me "you can't do that!"?

    In 2002 I saw a horse take a dump all over the entrance to a McDo here in France. Not sure if it was accidental or not, one doesn't tend to want to get close to a skittish horse right by the doors. And yes, I have a crappy resolution photo around someplace. ;-)

    1. Rampant Spaniel

      I'm guessing lawyers happened. Either maccies doesn't want the liability if they give someone a burger and they crash trying to ride and eat at the same time or something like that. Maccies was the only place I've been told they wouldn't serve a motorcyclist (although others have said the rule says motorcycles are ok) I wonder if BK etc have the rule or the employees just don't enforce it. With that many franchises and the high staff churn I'm sure there will be plenty of variation in the rules being applied \ misunderstood.

      It's easy enough to put a drink in a hard case \ pannier \ top box \ tank bag and ride away. I just found it amusing, all the silly little rules you get these days. Their house, their rules though, just as it's my money and my choice to spend it elsewhere. Taking a horse inside was a little silly.

  48. JustWondering
    Happy

    Not on the menu?

    Were the customers upset because it looked better than what they had on their tray?

  49. patrick_bateman

    So you cant walk up to a drive thru or use a pedal bike as... there is no pavement and cars need to pull up close to collect there order... is there reason, health and safety

    so i can be served on a motorbike, open face helmet drinking my shake or eating a Very hot apple slice....

    Ok you say, you wouldnt do that... but you munch on your chips or sip your drink in your car....so.....

    come on, lets get a test going, who's got a road legal go kart, quad, mobility scooter, SEGWAY it!!!!????

  50. cortland

    Ohhh Kay

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0oM8G8LVbo

  51. ClanArmstrong

    Really !!

    What possible trouble could they get into by serving a customer on a bicycle, a horse or a Great Dane? Stupid Rule. They should have had the lady wait off to the side and brought her food outside to her. Issue resolved. I am not the sharpest tack in the box, but is the world suffering from a lack of common sense?

  52. bugalugs

    in south oz

    my little CT110 with carrying box is quite welcome at Macca's drive-through. wouldn't try without some carrying capacity but...

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