While thousands of competitors, exhibitors and spectators filled Shelbyville, Tenn., for the annual Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration in August, USDA inspectors searching for signs of illegal soring expanded their search for violators.
The officials took important steps this year to root out soring everywhere on the show grounds (as authorized by federal law), not just in the inspection area where violators work to present their horses in the best possible light. The HSUS, which had staffers attending the show, encourages the USDA to continue the inspection process and to develop protocols for the detection of pressure shoeing.
Tennessee Walking Horses, known for their unique gait and willing nature, were originally bred to smoothly carry plantation owners over long distances to their farms.
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The "Big Lick" gait, pictured here, is prized in the TWH show world.© Paul Turner/The HSUS |
Today, they excel as reliable trail mounts and master the show ring. But, for too many, the road to a blue ribbon involves soring—a form of abuse.
Soring is an unscrupulous training practice in which horses' legs and feet are treated with caustic chemicals and other irritants, which forces them to lift their feet unnaturally high in a "Big Lick" exaggerated gait.
Mounting Pressures
In an effort to protect this abuse from happening, Congress passed the Horse Protection Act of 1970 (HPA), which gave the USDA authority to inspect horses at shows for signs of soring and to penalize violators.
Unfortunately, the law is enforced only sporadically, and political pressure from Walking Horse industry insiders has allowed soring to persist.
When it is enforced, the industry feels it: In 2006, HPA enforcement efforts of USDA and industry inspectors left so few horses eligible to show that organizers shut down the annual Celebration and no World Grand Champion was crowned.
For the past two years, HSUS staff members were at Shelbyville, observing both the condition of the competition horses and the USDA's enforcement of the Horse Protection Act. While this year's celebration was devoid of the drama that encircled the event in 2006, the tenor in the air was markedly different from the 2007 event.
That year, USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) were treated like unwelcome guests rather than federal law enforcement officials.
Stepping Up Enforcement
This year was the first time in years that USDA personnel stepped outside the confines of the designated inspection area to find evidence of soring at Walking or gaited horse shows. Having set this precedent, The HSUS is encouraging the USDA to make this practice standard at future shows.
Several HPA violations were found and ticketed as a result of the expanded inspections. Many horses were trailered onto the show grounds after federal veterinarians ended random inspections for the evening and focused on mandatory inspections in the designated inspection area.
Other exhibitors, however, said they felt the stepped-up inspection protocols helped level the playing field. Some were quoted in the local media as saying they hoped stronger enforcement continued.
When no USDA or industry inspectors were present in the barn areas, HSUS staff observed several possible violations of HPA and/or regulations and reported those possible infractions to USDA personnel.
Cause for Concern
We have ongoing concern about the Horse Protection Program's handling of cases in which tested horses exhibit pain responses in the soles of both feet. Bilateral pain suggests pressure shoeing, the most cruel form of soring. In pressure shoeing, horse's hooves are cut painfully short—or a foreign object is inserted—and then the shoe is nailed on. There are commensurate severe penalties for this practice, but they are rarely, if ever, imposed. In 2007, horses that showed bilateral pain were disqualified as "unacceptable," but no other penalties were imposed.
In 2008, inspectors looked no further for evidence of pressure shoeing—which carries a five-year suspension—on any horses but the winners of the flat shod championship classes. Procedures must be implemented (including pulling shoes and examining soles) to follow through in the detection of pressure shoeing. Appropriate penalties must be applied.
