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. 

Summary timeline: What's behind US Equestrian, American Horse Council calls for delay of USDA's new Walking horse soring regulations?

UPDATE: On January 24, the US Equestrian Federation announced that the US Department of Agriculture had indeed pushed back new rules to prevent soring in Tennessee walking horses and similar breeds until April 1, 2025. The article below describes the background to this decision. 

Since then, however, sweeping changes in Washington, DC have affected many cabinet agencies, and are expected to impact the USDA. Whether these changes will impact the APHIS horse inspection program remains to be determined.

Readers in the USA may be aware that long-anticipated changes to the federal Horse Protection Act are scheduled to go into effect on February 1. These new rules change the way that Tennessee Walking horses will be inspected at horse shows, and by whom, in an effort to prevent deliberate "soring" practices to enhance gait.

If only it was that easy.

USDA Invites Tennessee Walking Horse Owners, Trainers to Horseshoeing Clinic Aimed to Improve Horse Protection Act Compliance

This public announcement is provided by the US Department of Agriculture.

On February 3, 2018, USDA Animal Care and the S.H.O.W. horse industry organization will hold a shoeing clinic for trainers, exhibitors and owners who participate in events regulated under the Horse Protection Act to help these individuals better understand and follow the federal regulations.

Hail Mary: USDA proceeds with last-ditch effort to end soring by imposing bans on Walking horse pads, action devices

It's fourth down at the end of the fourth quarter. The clock is counting down. Do you punt or pass? The game's at stake. It's time to pull off a play they'll never forget. It's time to throw that Hail Mary pass. 

In the waning hours of President Obama’s administration’s days in Washington, his out-bound US Department of Agriculture says they are ready to drop a bombshell in the middle of the horse world.

The bombshell may well devastate a sector of the show horse industry, but there will be cheers, as well. It just depends which side you're on, and if you're willing to take the time to read the fine print.

American Horse Council Statement on Nonspecific Language in USDA Horse Protection Act Amendment

For the past few months, the US Department of Agriculture has been hosting "listening sessions" around the country and gathering input about a proposed amendment to the American Horse Protection Act, which bans the "soring" abuse techniques used on some Tennessee Walking horses to gain an advantage in the show ring in some classes, particularly where the horse is asked to do the famous "big lick" walking gait. 

Among the features of this amendment is complete outlawing of pads, action devices such as pastern chains, and weighted shoes.

Horseshoes in Congress: Whitfield-Cohen Letter Clarifies "Weighted Shoe" Under Proposed PAST Act; House Hearing on Soring Legislation Wednesday

What and when: November 13, 2013 10 a.m. — United States Congress, House Committee on Energy and Commerce: Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade hearing on the PAST Act to End Soring

Will the PAST Act finally bring an end to Walking horse stacks, pressure shoeing and pastern soring? A Congressional hearing on Wednesday will hear both sides of the argument. (Photo courtesy of Sarah Barnett and HSUS Facebook page) 

The United States Congress will be talking horseshoes tomorrow at 10 a.m. Chances are, there won't be a farrier in the House (of Representatives) but this is a hearing whose time has come.

Federal Court Rules Against Lawsuit: USDA's Tennessee Walking Horse Anti-Soring Regulations Are Not Unlawful

A U.S. District Court in Texas upheld federal regulations to prevent the practice of “soring,” in which trainers abuse horses to force them to perform an unnatural high-stepping gait for competitions. The U.S. Department of Agriculture regulations, which were adopted following a 2010 legal petition filed by The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), require that USDA-certified horse industry organizations impose uniform mandatory minimum penalties for violations of the Horse Protection Act.

News and HSUS videos: Walking horses seized from show trainer's barn in Tennessee, veterinarian Adair explains soring

Walking horse trainer Larry Wheelon heads to court today in Blount County, Tennessee. The well-known trainer and judge will face charges following his arrest on Friday. As shown in this video from the Humane Society of the United States, horses placed with Wheelon for trained were seized by the USDA, with assistance from the county sheriff and humane society officials, in connection with the charges.

Wheelon may be criminally charged for violations of the federal Horse Protection Act; soring is also a violation of state law in Tennessee. Further charges may be levied against Wheelon's employees or associates.

(Please wait for the tv news videos to load.)

The Horse Protection Act has been on the books since 1978 but attempts to enforce it have not been fully effective at wiping out the practice. As these videos point out, soring may be of the "chemical" type, which works on sensitizing the horse's pasterns and/or coronet, or "mechanical", which involves intentionally trimming the foot to thin the sole and lower the wall and then inserting objects or hard-curing epoxy between the padded shoe and the thin sole.

Horse Protection Act Amendment Proposed: Bans Action Devices on Tennessee Walking Horses

Tennessee Walking Horse show regulation changes proposed
in Congressional amendment to the Horse Protection Act

The following document was received from Representative Whitfield's office this afternoon and is reprinted in its entirety without editing. 

For the purposes of this document, the amendment has been reviewed. The text defines action devices as: "any boot, collar, chain, roller, or other device that encircles or is placed upon the lower extremity of the leg of a horse in such a manner that it can—(A) rotate around the leg or slide up and down the leg, so as to cause friction; or (B) strike the hoof, coronet band, fetlock joint, or pastern of the horse."

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Rep. Ed Whitfield (KY-01), and Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN-09), today introduced H.R. 6388, the Horse Protection Act Amendments of 2012. The Amendment will make changes to the Horse Protection Act of 1970, to provide additional protection to prohibit the soring of horses, an abusive practice used by some horse trainers in the Tennessee Walking Horse industry. 

“Far too often, those involved in showing the Tennessee Walking Horse have turned a blind eye to abusive trainers, or when they do take action, the penalties are so minor, it does nothing to prevent these barbaric acts,” Whitfield said. “This amendment does not cost the federal government any additional money and is essential in helping to put an end to the practice of soring Tennessee Walking Horses by abusive trainers.”

Rep. Cohen said, “In Tennessee, soring horses is illegal and unacceptable. Those responsible for abusing these horses should be punished severely and banned from the sport.  How we treat animals is a direct reflection of our character, both as individuals and a nation.  There is no ribbon, no prize nor championship worth the price of one’s humanity.”

The proposed amendment will accomplish three major goals. First, it eliminates self-policing by requiring the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to assign a licensed inspector if a Tennessee Walking Horse show management indicates its intent to hire one.  The hiring of a licensed inspector is voluntary and not a mandate.  The incentive for show management is to ensure an honest and fair show, and protect itself from liability if soring is found at the show by a USDA spot inspection.   

Second, it adds a prohibition on the use of action devices on the horse breeds that have been the victims of soring.  Action devices, such as chains that rub up and down an already-sore leg, intensify the horse’s pain when it moves, so that the horse quickly jolts up its leg.   

Lastly, the amendment increases the penalties on an individual caught soring a horse.

Horses in the Tennessee Walking Industry are known for possessing a smooth, natural gait, but in order to be successful in competitions their natural gait is often artificially exaggerated to ensure an extreme, high-stepping gait. 

Some horse exhibitors, owners, and trainers use abusive and inhumane training methods to produce the higher gait.  The abusive practices are called “soring,” which is accomplished by irritating or blistering a horse’s forelegs through the application of caustic chemicals such as mustard oil, cutting the horse’s hoof painfully short, or the use of mechanical devices to inflict pain, so that it hurts the horse to step down. 

The USDA Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted an audit of the Horse Protection Act Program, finding that trainers in the industry often go to great lengths to evade detection rather than comply with federal law and train horses using humane methods.

The OIG made several recommendations, including stiffer penalties and abolishing the self-policing practices currently allowed under regulations, where the Horse Industry Organizations (HIOs) are able to assign their own inspectors to horse shows.

Click for full ordering information; this ultimate, extensive reference is in stock for immediate shipment

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.  

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Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital's Dr. Scott Hopper: Voices from the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration

Video courtesy of NewsChannel 5;
Background: The Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration is going on this week in Shelbyville, Tennessee. US Department of Agriculture veterinarians are on hand to inspect horses for evidence of "soring", the illegal practice of artificially enhancing a horse's gait. Also on hand are representatives of local organizations who are conducting their own inspections to see if they agree with the USDA results.

Dr. Stephen Mullins, president of the local inspection group SHOW, says that USDA inspectors issued five times as many citations in the first six days of this year’s Celebration as in all 11 days of last year’s, according to the Nashville newspaper, The Tennessean.

This week, a press conference was held to publicly inspect two of the horses rejected by the USDA. This is shown in the video.
On August 30, the Walking Horse Report conducted an interview with Scott Hopper, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVS from Rood + Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky. The Walking Horse Report has kindly agreed to allow the interview to be printed on The Hoof Blog.

Dr. Hopper was at The Celebration on the first Thursday through Sunday nights of the Celebration and will be in attendance all three championship nights.

Dr Hopper of Rood and Riddle
Equine Hospital, Lexington, KY

Dr. Hopper is a graduate of the University Wisconsin – Madison School of Veterinary Medicine, holds a Masters degree from Washington State University, is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons and currently works as a surgeon and partner at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital, where he is head of the Rood & Riddle Stem Cell Lab.

Q - During your inspection of the horses after they were disqualified by USDA VMOs, did you find horses that should have been allowed to show?

A – I looked at approximately 30 horses the first four nights of the Celebration and yes many of these horses should have been allowed to show. The biggest area of concern I had was with the palpation of horses and those deemed sore by USDA VMOs. Approximately 70% of those cases, I disagreed with the VMOs and found nothing wrong with those horses. My initial exam was similar to those performed by the DQPs and VMOs and I could not elicit any response. I went one step further and performed a more aggressive deep palpation of the horse’s lower limb and again I could not elicit a response. These horses should have been allowed to show.

Q – In your opinion, is the scar rule being interpreted as the “Understanding the Scar Rule” pamphlet distributed as the training manual to VMOs and the industry HIOs?

A – No it is not. The scar rule is a very subjective rule and is not being applied consistently.

Q – On those horses disqualified for scar rule violations, would you in your professional opinion, deem those horses sore?

A – A scar rule violation could be called and the horse show zero signs of soring, nor would it necessarily mean this horse had been sored in the past.

Q – Given that to be a scar rule violation the horse must show bilateral (both feet) scarring, did you see horses called out that only had unilateral (one foot) tissue change?

A – Yes, many of the horses I looked at did not have any evidence of a scar rule violation in one foot and would be questionable on the second foot

Q – Of those horses that you inspected and those you saw enter inspection, in your opinion is soring required to participate?

A – I don’t believe that horses need to be sored to perform at a high level at the Celebration. Of the horses I examined I saw no signs of abuse. If any owner or trainer believes that this is still necessary then they should be banned from the profession, because there is no place for it anymore.

The Walking Horse National Celebration attracts thousands of spectators. Photo by Stephanie Graves.

Q – Would you be a proponent of more objective testing rather than the existing subjective inspections?

A – The industry needs to do everything it can to end soring. Yes, technology should be used to implement science-based, objective testing. The current inspections are very subjective, inconsistently applied and result in many unfair disqualifications. Sound horses are the only horses that should be allowed to show; but more importantly sound training methods should be the methods used in both the barns and at the show.

Q – Would you be willing to work with reformers in the industry to help restore the proud tradition of the Tennessee Walking Horse?

A – I have worked on many walking horses at Rood & Riddle, performing surgeries and lameness exams, and I know firsthand what a wonderful breed of horse the Tennessee Walking Horse is and can be. I have volunteered to serve in a capacity to help and would be willing to help with industry reformers that have a goal of ending soring and maintaining the welfare of the Tennessee Walking Horse.

Q – Is there a problem with soring in the Tennessee Walking Horse industry?

A – There are cheaters in every sport that think they can beat the system but I have no doubt that the inspections at The Celebration are doing everything they can to catch these individuals and put an end to soring. I did not see a problem with soring during my four nights inspecting horses at The Celebration.

Q – Who contacted you about inspecting horses at The Celebration?
A – Representatives from the Tennessee Walking Show Horse Organization contacted me through a mutual friend Dr. John Bennett. They asked me to come and examine horses to get my objective opinion on what I saw in horses that were disqualified from participation.

Q – Is it possible with improper palpation of horses to have movement indicative of soring when in fact the improper palpation is the reason for the movement of the horses foot?

A – It is definitely possible to make any horse move if that is the goal. Improper palpation techniques can be used to induce movement which does not mean that the horse is sore.

Q – Are those techniques being used in inspection?

A – I cannot speak to that directly as I am not directly involved during those initial inspections, however I would say several horses disqualified for sensitivity to palpation immediately came to me and I could not get the horses to show any sign of sensitivity to palpation, even when I aggressively palpated those horses. Palpating the limbs of lame horses is what I do for a living, if a horse was sore I would know it.

Original article appeared on the Walking Horse Report web site.

The Hoof Blog hopes to also have an interview with Dr. Tracy Turner, who is at the Celebration acting as a consultant to the USDA.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.  

Follow Hoofcare + Lameness on Twitter: @HoofcareJournal

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any direct compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned, other than Hoofcare Publishing. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Tennessee Walking Horse Pastern Action Devices and Hoof Pads Ban Endorsed by AVMA, AAEP; Vets' Joint Memo States Devices Are Part of Soring Practices

Walking horse hoof packages include some or all of these components: (from ground up) 1. a shoe on the ground; 2. a stack of pads anchored by a double-nail pad system; 3. a hose clamp that secures the pad package around the hoof wall; 4. pastern action devices, usually chains or beads. The pastern and sole are the focus of soring methods to inflict pain so that the horse doesn't want to keep either front foot on the ground for long. The heavy pad-shoe combo exaggerates the flight of the foot through the air. In 1985, the USDA proposed to ban pads but the ban didn't last. (Hoofcare + Lameness file photo)

The following is a position statement received from the AVMA and AAEP today. Soring is prohibited under the Horse Protection Act, a federal law enforced by the US Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS)

June 14, 2012 - The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) today called for a ban on the use of action devices and performance packages in the training and showing of Tennessee Walking Horses.

These devices and packages are implicated in the practice of soring, which is the abusive act of intentionally inflicting pain to accentuate a horse’s gait.

"Soring has been an illegal act for more than 40 years. Nevertheless, increasingly shrewd and more difficult to detect—yet equally painful—methods of soring continue to plague the Walking Horse Industry," said Dr. René A. Carlson, President of the AVMA.

Walking horse shows such as The Celebration in Shelbyville, Tennessee attract large,
enthusiastic crowds. (Photo via Stephanie Graves.

"America's veterinarians are asking USDA-APHIS to prohibit the use of action devices and performance packages in the training and showing of Walking Horses, because they appear to be facilitating soring," Dr. Carlson added.

"The soring of Tennessee Walking Horses is an extremely abusive practice and it must end," said AAEP President Dr. John Mitchell. "We urge a modification to the Horse Protection Act so that all action devices and performance packages are banned."

Following is the veterinary groups' joint position statement:

The American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Association of Equine Practitioners support a ban on the use of action devices and performance packages in the training and showing of Tennessee Walking Horses.

A natural-type Walking horse without hoof buildup or
action devices. Image courtesy of eXtensionHorses
and Ashley Griffin, University of Kentucky

Action devices used in the training and showing of Tennessee Walking Horses include chains, ankle rings, collars, rollers, and bracelets of wood or aluminum beads. When used in conjunction with chemical irritants on the pastern of the horse’s foot, the motion of the action device creates a painful response, resulting in a more exaggerated gait.

Foreign substances are being detected on the pastern area during pre-show inspections at an alarmingly high rate, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics. While there is little scientific evidence to indicate that the use of action devices below a certain weight are detrimental to the health and welfare of the horse, banning action devices from use in the training and showing of Tennessee Walking Horses reduces the motivation to apply a chemical irritant to the pastern.

The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF), the national governing body for equestrian sport in the United States, disallows action devices in the show ring for all recognized national breed affiliates. The AVMA and the AAEP commend the USEF for this rule and urge the USDA-APHIS to adopt similar restrictions for Tennessee Walking Horses.

The walking horse exaggerated walk has been popular for at least 50 years;
this horse competed in the Walking Horse Celebration in the 1960s. Roy
Rogers' famous horse Trigger was a Tennessee Walking Horse.
(Hoofcare + Lameness archives)

Performance packages (also called stacks or pads), made of plastic, leather, wood, rubber and combinations of these materials, are attached below the sole of the horse’s natural hoof and have a metal band that runs around the hoof wall to maintain them in place.

Performance packages add weight to the horse’s foot, causing it to strike with more force and at an abnormal angle to the ground. They also facilitate the concealment of items that apply pressure to the sole of the horse’s hoof. Pressure from these hidden items produces pain in the hoof so that the horse lifts its feet faster and higher in an exaggerated gait.

Because the inhumane practice of soring Tennessee Walking Horses has continued 40 years after passage of the Horse Protection Act, and because the industry has been unable to make substantial progress in eliminating this abusive practice, the AVMA and the AAEP believe a ban on action devices and performance packages is necessary to protect the health and welfare of the horse.

--end of announcement

Hoof Blog note: It should be clarified that Walking horses are not governed by USEF rules. Other "action" breeds such as the American Saddlebred, Hackney, and National Show Horse are governed by USEF rules.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any direct compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned, other than Hoofcare Publishing. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

ABC News / HSUS Tennessee Walking Horse Expose Brings Soring Case to National Attention

ABC News broadcast a hidden-camera video this week, exposing the at-home training techniques of well-known Tennessee Walking horse trainer Jackie McConnell of Collierville, Tennessee.

According to the ABC web site, the video was part of a recent Grand Jury indictment of McConnell and was shot by someone working on the trainer's barn crew while collaborating with the Humane Society of the United States.

As a result of this video, Pepsi has withdrawn its sponsorship of the breed's largest show, the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration in Shelbyville, Tennessee each September.

The Walking Horse Trainers Association (WHTA) has revoked McConnell's training license. WHTA did not have prior knowledge that the video existed or that ABC News planned to air it. Following the broadcast, the WHTA director quickly called a meeting to voice their reaction.



The WHTA was quick to take HSUS and ABC News to task for comments made on the broadcast about the Walking horse's natural gait.

WHTA President Jamie Hankins: “The gait of the Tennessee Walking Horse is a natural one and our horse does not have to be sored to achieve the high-stepping gait we are so well-known for.”

As further proof of the WHTA’s commitment to the welfare of the horse, Hankins stated that “[i]n February of this year, the USDA released data related to foreign substance testing and our organization acted immediately to introduce a new industry swabbing and drug testing initiative which will be implemented within the next month. This initiative goes above and beyond what is required by the Horse Protection Act, however, our board felt strongly that this program was necessary to protect the interests of our horses and our profession in light of the latest information received from the USDA.”



McConnell, who was previously banned from training horses for five years by the USDA, has been charged with 52 counts by a Grand Jury but he entered into a plea agreement last week with prosecutors. In exchange for pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the Horse Protection Act, the other counts will be dropped.

The charges dropped relate to horse soring, transporting and entering sored horses in show competitions and falsifying documents. The penalty for the one count could be a $5000 fine, up to three years in prison, or both.

Horseshoer Joseph Abernathy was charged along with McConnell. The court agreed to allow him to continue to operate his farrier business, provided he report weekly on whose horses he has shod. Abernathy did not have any previous USDA violations on his record.

One of the training methods shown on the video is called "stewarding". It teaches the horse to stand still and not flinch when its sore feet and pasterns are handled by inspectors (stewards).

To learn more: Watch a video of a stake championship class for Walking horses at the Mississippi Charity Horse Show in Jackson last year. These horses all passed the anti-soring inspection before the competition.

Click on the image for more information and online ordering.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.  
 

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any direct compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned, other than Hoofcare Publishing. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

USDA Audit Recommends Abolishing DQP System, Shows Would Hire Veterinarians to Inspect Horses for Soring Violations Under Horse Protection Act

The United Stated Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently performed an audit of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's (APHIS) oversight of the humane treatment of Tennessee Walking horses at shows as mandated by the Horse Protection Act. The audit also addressed the long-distance transport of horses destined for slaughter outside the United States.

To quote the audit document: "Concerning the treatment of show horses, we found that APHIS’ program for inspecting horses for soring is not adequate to ensure that these animals are not being abused. At present, horse industry organizations hire their own inspectors (known as designated qualified persons (DQP)) to inspect horses at the shows they sponsor. However, we found that DQPs do not always inspect horses to effectively enforce the law and regulations, and in some cases where they do find violations, they deliberately issue tickets to friends or family members of responsible individuals so that the responsible person could avoid receiving a penalty for violating the Horse Protection Act."

The report said that APHIS employees attend very few horses and that, when they do, APHIS employees routinely bring armed security or the police with them in the interest of their personal safety.

In the executive summary of the audit, OIG recommended that APHIS "seek the necessary funding from Congress for the Horse Protection Program, as the current level of funding does not enable the agency to oversee it adequately. Given the weaknesses in the inspection process, APHIS employees need to attend more shows to ensure that horses are inspected adequately."

OIG's review of the slaughter horse transport program found that, in their view, APHIS needs to improve its controls for ensuring that horses being shipped to foreign plants for slaughter are treated humanely. At present, the summary said, "APHIS does not deny authorization to individuals with a record of inhumanely transporting slaughter horses to ship other loads of horses, even if unpaid fines are pending for previous violations. Regulations simply do not address denying this authority, and so APHIS provides the authorization, regardless of the owner’s history. Without regulations or legislation to establish more meaningful penalties, owners have little incentive to comply with regulations, pay their penalties, and cease inhumanely handling horses bound for slaughter."

Finally, OIG found that there were "control deficiencies in how APHIS tags horses that have been inspected and approved for shipment to foreign slaughterhouses. The agency requires shippers to mark such horses with backtags, which are intended to allow APHIS employees to trace horses back to their owner and also to verify that the horses have passed inspection by an accredited veterinarian. We found, however, that the agency’s controls over these tags were weak, and that owners could easily obtain them and apply the tags to horses without APHIS’ knowledge."

In addition, APHIS "does not currently have an effective control or tracking system to trace all backtags used to transport horses to slaughter. Without regulations controlling the distribution, use, and tracking of these tags, owners can transport horses that do not meet the requirements for shipment. APHIS needs to seek the appropriate legislative and regulatory changes to ensure that only qualified individuals (such as APHIS personnel or USDA-accredited veterinarians) apply backtags to horses being shipped to slaughter. It also needs to obtain the resources necessary to adequately oversee the Slaughter Horse Transport Program."

Recommendation Summary

1. Abolish the current DQP system and establish by regulation an inspection process based on independent accredited veterinarians, and obtain the authority, if needed, to charge show managers the cost of providing independent, accredited veterinarians to perform inspections at sanctioned horse shows, sales, and other horse-related events.

2. Implement a control to ensure that individuals suspended from horse shows, sales, or exhibitions due to Horse Protection Act violations do not participate in subsequent events.

3. Seek the necessary funding to adequately oversee the Horse Protection

4. Revise and enforce regulations to prohibit horses disqualified as sore from competing in all classes at a horse show, exhibition, or other horse-related event.

5. Revise Slaughter Horse Transport Program regulations to allow APHIS to deny shipping documents to individuals who repeatedly violate humane handling regulations and who have fines outstanding.

6. Develop and maintain a control (database or list) of all individuals who have violated the regulations of the Slaughter Horse Transport Program and have not paid the associated fines.

7. Revise regulations or implement adequate controls to ensure that APHIS provides backtags to qualified personnel who can inspect horses bound for slaughter and apply, or oversee the application of, backtags when approving transport documentation.

8. Develop and implement an appropriate control to track individual horses by backtag number on all shipping documents approved so that reconciliation can be performed, violations can be investigated, and enforcement action can be initiated against the horse’s owner and shipper.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.

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Born-Again Walking Horse Celebration Begins This Week Under New Inspection, Attitude

by Fran Jurga | 23 August 2009 | Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog

Trainer Chad Williams trains The Lineman for the upcoming Walking Horse Celebration in Shelbyville, Tennessee. (Photo from The Tennessean newspaper)

Here we go. Every year about this time I wonder if should go to Tennessee. I have never been to the Walking Horse Celebration. In fact, I have never been to a walking horse show. As a result, I don't mouth off about soring and training techniques because other than a few horses I have seen while traveling in the South, I've still not seen these wonderful horses compete in an exclusive walking horse show.

Around here, walking horses are one of the most popular trail horses and far removed from the show culture in the south that gets the breed so much bad press...and yet maintains such a stalwart following. I imagine the atmosphere at a walking horse show is sort of like the lobster boat races in Maine or the oxen pulls in Vermont. If you're from there, you get it.

Except for the presence of inspectors. And the state police. Just a few years ago, the Celebration was stopped and public safety was an issue. That's how mad people were when USDA inspectors actually inspected the horses for soring evidence. The trainers said that the inspectors didn't use valid criteria and wanted their own inspectors back.

When USDA inspectors pulled up at a show, the trainers loaded up and pulled out, even when it was--as often was the case--a charity show to benefit a hospital or community organization's fundraising efforts.

In the past year, there has been massive restructuring and reorganization that might make this year's Celebration peaceful and profitable and a showcase for sound, safe horses. Let's hope.

The Tennessean newspaper published a lengthy article today that gives the background leading up to this year's new-rules show. It doesn't pull any punches or sugar-coat the issue.

Among the facts: abuse allegations by federal inspectors have sky-rocketed this year, even leading to the first lifetime bans. But pair that with this fact: 150,000 tickets have already been sold for this year's Celebration. How many people buy tickets to attend other breed horse shows, do you think? Or a dressage show? Even the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event attracts only about 20,000 people on its final day.

Walking horses remain the most publicized enigma of the American horse industry. The show horses and their culture are a lightning rod: Some shun them, some embrace them. Some say the trainers and owners are misunderstood, some say they are criminals.

And they've been saying that for more than 30 years now, since the Horse Protection Act was passed to prevent soring and abusive shoeing. And I'm still writing these articles. Still wondering how and why this continues to be a raw, open wound in horse showing's hide.

Read that article, but don't believe everything you hear. Like so many things these days, there's no easy solution to an old wound like this.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing. No use without permission. You only need to ask. Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.

Conference on Walking Horses and Horse Protection Act Planned for Ohio in April

"The End of Soring" is the goal of the first Sound Horse Conference to be held in Columbus, Ohio, later this year.

The event is set for April 11-12 at the Hilton Garden Inn and is sponsored by the Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders and Exhibitors Association, the American Association of Equine Practitioners, the American Horse Protection Association, Friends of Sound Horses and the Humane Society of the United States.

Described as two days of "stimulating conversation and action," the goal of the conference is to accelerate progress to end soring "by bringing all interested people together to share ideas, increase knowledge, resources and action plans."

Discussion will include the challenges to enforcement of the Horse Protection Act, technology for future enforcement, proposed research that is needed, detection of pressure shoeing, how to prevent soring and other related topics.

The Equine Affaire, an all-breed, all-sport horse expo, will also take place in Columbus during that week.

"Soring" refers to illegal methods used to exaggerate a Tennessee Walking Horse's natural high-stepping gait in the show ring. Under federal law, horses may be inspected for signs of soring prior to competition, and are disqualified if they are found to have been sored.

Disputes between trainers and federal officials over the inspection process plagued the industry during 2006, resulting in the cancellation of the World Grand Championship class at the Walking Horse Celebration, but the 2007 horse show season appeared to go much more smoothly

From more information about the conference, e-mail data@fosh.info or call (800) 651-7993.

Alleged Tennessee Walking Horse Cruelty Case Charges Farrier As Well As Trainer

New rules in place at the 69th Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration - which began this week in Shelbyville, Tennessee– offer some signs of progress for an industry that has been plagued for decades by the specter of soring. But recent allegations of illegal and inhumane training methods serve as a reminder that the industry is still under close scrutiny.

In a letter sent this week to Hon. Charles Crawford, Bedford County, Tennessee District Attorney General, The Humane Society of the United States urged Crawford to investigate an alleged case of "pressure shoeing" and pursue, if warranted, animal cruelty charges against Tennessee Walking Horse trainer Dick Peebles and the farrier who allegedly performed the pressure shoeing. The Humane Society of the United States also offered assistance in investigating this case.

" At a time when some trainers and leaders in the Tennessee Walking Horse industry are trying to implement reform and finally put an end to soring, those individuals that refuse to comply with state and federal law and continue to abuse and molest these magnificent animals should be held accountable," said Keith Dane, director of equine protection for The Humane Society of the United States. "Those who practice the illegal act of pressure shoeing should be rejected by the entire Tennessee Walking Horse industry."

"Pressure shoeing"– generally held to be the most egregious form of illegal horse soring – is the trimming a horse's hoof so the shoe puts painful pressure on the horse's sole, forcing an exaggerated high gait. In some instances, foreign objects are placed between the sole and the shoe or pad which is nailed to the hoof, to create painful pressure on the sole.

On August 15, the Walking Horse Trainers Association (WHTA) Board of Directors and Ethics Committee issued a report detailing an investigation of Mr. Peebles' alleged shoeing violation. According to the report, Mr. Peebles, while not admitting guilt, agreed to accept responsibility for a shoeing violation and received a five-year suspension penalty, a penalty reserved for pressure shoeing under the USDA Horse Protection Act Operating Plan.

The WHTA's suspension of Mr. Peebles' trainer's license may not actually prevent him from training horses, or his clients from showing them. The suspension was not implemented and is not enforced under the Horse Protection Act, but rather the WHTA's own rules and ethics code; therefore, he is not officially banned from showing under any law or governmental regulation.


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2006 Kentucky Walking Horse Celebration Cancelled in Advance; USDA Inspection Cited as Reason

According to a report posted on www.tennessean.com, the 42nd Annual Kentucky Celebration Tennessee Walking Horse Show, which was to have been held this week, has been cancelled.

To quote tennessean.com: "Jerry Hoskins, a member of the board of the Show, said the decision to call off the show was based on what organizers believed to be unfair and inconsistent inspections by federal officials.

"We decided it's in the best interest of trainers and owners to not even try to show," said Hoskins of Liberty, Kentucky, where the show was to be held for the first time. "We do feel like the USDA would be very hard on us."