Over thirty horses could end up homeless after the Housing Preservation and Development agency issued an order to Shamrock Stables to vacate their premises on 45th Street in Manhattan by the end of 2009.

The agency wants to shift the stables to build some affordable housing. 

The agency’s decision has hit the Irish-run stables hard as the holiday season is the Central Park horse and carriage boom time, and with there being no room at the inn, literally, at the four other stables in Manhattan, the trusty steeds that take tourists on trips through Central Park face an uncertain future.

"I'm actively working with the city and hopefully can come up with a solution that's good for them and for Shamrock," owner Ian McKeever, who came to the States in the 1980s from Navan in County Meath, told the New York Post.

"This is my life. I can't imagine that there would be no place in the city for these horses."

The city has argued that the four other stables should be able to put the Shamrock horses up, but the counter argument is that during the money-spinning holiday season more horses will be drafted into the city to meet tourist demand, thus filling up any free spots that may currently exist.

Not only will the horses be homeless, but 17 carriage drivers will also have their livelihood endangered.

Irish actor Liam Neeson has been a long time supporter of the horse carriage industry in the city, thought it has met some criticism from animal advocacy groups who against the animal’s lives being place at risk on the city streets.