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Favorite Answer
Yes
Dan B
Horses already came equipped with afterburner. Not much to tuning a horse other than healthcare. I imagine that buggies and carriages could probably be customized based upon the technology of the times. But there speed and acceleration off the starting line was limited to the horse's ability.
FlagMichael
Maybe. One of my friends once pondered, "When kids had never heard of cars, did they push around sticks and say 'clip-clop' instead of 'vroom'?"
Mog
Yeah. There's an episode of The Waltons about that. Episode: The Pony Cart.
And if you watch Sherlock Holmes, it mentions the different carriages. Certain families had certain crests on their carriages, and wealthy women had carriages with step covers that attached to the door and that kept the step nice and clean when they opened the carriage door to get in and out so their shoes didn't get dirty.
I'm not sure about the horses
Joe
Not so much modification of the horses.
Rich folks would invest in beautiful carriage horses, though, and kept them groomed to perfection. A pair, or even a four-horse hitch, would be selected to match.
The carriages would be waxed and polished to perfection. Works of art that you can still see at shows.
Yes, those who could afford it would show them off.
You can see a little of this at an event where the Budweiser Clydesdales are showing. The horses, and the beer wagon.