Soring regulation: USDA further postpones Horse Protection Act's 2024 amendments for Tennessee walking horses

A press release has been provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), which is charged with enforcing the American Horse Protection Act, a federal legislation passed in 1970 to stop the intentional "soring" of Tennessee walking horses and racking horses in order to enhance show ring gaits. Soring techniques manipulate the gait by deliberately inflicting pain on the horse, often by chemical means.

After more than 50 years, many claim that soring abuses continue in spite of inspections, harsh penalties for conviction, and condemnation of soring by both the American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Association of Equine Practitioners, among many other critics.