A Lysander family's carriage ride through Central Park in New York City took an ugly turn this past weekend when the horse was spooked and they narrowly escaped the carriage.



Theresa Shaver, her husband Edward and their 13-year-old son, Eddie, took the ride Sunday, but it ended abruptly when the horse became anxious or spooked.



The horse started backing up, pushing the carriage over a curb and toward a hill. The family had to jump from the carriage. Shaver caught the ride on video.



Shaver said her concern for her family comes through loud and clear on the video, but she said she also was worried about the horse, who fell twice during the mishap.



She found out that within a few minutes of her family's accident, the driver had the horse back out on Sixth Avenue to pick up more fares. She called the police who put her in touch with the ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals).



An ASPCA official called her to say the organization checked out the horse and driver. The ASPCA has gone on record stating it believes the carriage horse industry in New York City should be phased out and is supporting a city councilwoman's resolution to do so.



Shaver said she was in New York for two days to attend a rally with the Communications Workers of America. She works for Verizon, which is in contract talks with the union.



She had never been to Central Park, so the family decided to take a carriage ride.



"The horse was scared by something and started bobbing his head," Shaver said Friday. "He got us turned in the opposite direction. The driver didn't seem to have control. We were turned around facing the oncoming traffic in Central Park."



"The driver was trying to get us in the right direction and you can see the horse starts to back us up over the curb," Shaver said. "The curb leads to a hill and he is pushing the carriage up over the curb toward the hill."



Shaver said the horse fell and "the carriage felt like it was going to tip. My husband was saying 'get ready to jump.'"



When they got out, Eddie ran behind the carriage just as the horse got up and started moving backwards again. This is when Shaver can be heard on the video yelling at him to run.



"It was almost going to run him over," she said.



At that point, she said she began to feel bad for the horse, especially after seeing him fall twice. "He was on the ground for about a minute," she said. "Someone in the park ran over to help."



Shaver said she was thankful no one got hurt, either in her family or the scores of other people in the area.



"It was devastating to see. Other people in the park were crying," she said. "We tried to calm down."



Since she posted her video on YouTube, she has been interviewed by CNN and Inside Edition.



