by Christina Wilkie (Become a fan) as published in the Huffington Post
“This legislation brings excessive regulatory burdens on the walking horse industry…”
Warning: Graphic Abuse Documented
WASHINGTON — The cruel practice of “soring” championship gaited horses by wrapping their hooves in corrosive chemicals and then applying chains or bands to the wounds in order to create an artificially high-stepping gait came under heightened scrutiny this week in Congress.
Kentucky Republican Rep. Ed Whitfield has introduced a bill to strengthen the decades-old ban on soring gaited horses. So far, Whitfield has garnered 233 co-sponsors from both parties, a difficult task in the highly polarized House of Representatives. But at a hearing of the Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday, Whitfield’s bill was met with opposition from his fellow Republican, Tennessee Rep. Marsha Blackburn.
Kentucky and Tennessee are home to the bulk of the industry for gaited show horses, in which breeds like the Tennessee Walking Horse are paraded around show rings for major prize money in intense competitions. To create the signature high-stepped gait, trainers often use heavy weights or painful chains on the horses’ hooves. What may look to the audience like a happy horse prancing is actually a horse flinching — the animal lifts its legs higher because putting them on the ground is painful.
Whitfield’s bill, called the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act, would prohibit the use of any artificial tools to make horses hold their legs higher and stiffen maximum penalties for those who break existing Horse Protection Act statutes. It would also require that horse inspectors looking for soring be licensed by the USDA, and prohibit those with financial interests in the show industry from acting as inspectors. Tennessee Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen is also a leading sponsor of the bill.
Blackburn, who is vice chair of the subcommittee that held the hearing and one of the top Republican women in the House, spoke out against the bill. “This legislation brings excessive regulatory burdens on the walking horse industry and could potentially eliminate the entire industry and thus the entire breed,” Blackburn told the witnesses. The lawmaker argued that the show-horse industry’s compliance with the current ban on soring is around 97 percent, thereby making any tougher inspections unnecessary.
Blackburn did not respond to a request for comment from The Huffington Post.
Current law bans the use of soring chemicals, but not the use of weighted horseshoes, hoof bands and other devices. Supporters of the PAST Act say the currently legal devices go hand-in-hand with chemical soring. As it stands, the walking horse industry is largely allowed to self-regulate whether owners and trainers abide by the law. And it reports its own — remarkably high — compliance rates.
But when independent USDA inspectors showed up in Blackburn’s home state in 2012 for the gaited horse industry’s splashy annual show, known as the Celebration, they found that 76% of a random sample of nearly 200 horses all tested positive for chemicals commonly used in soring. Donna Benefield, a witness at the congressional hearing Wednesday who has administered USDA-certified horse inspection programs for the past 25 years, said these chemicals can include blistering mustard oil, lighter fluid and salicylic acid.
A 2012 expose by ABC News (above) contained gruesome footage of one of the Tennessee Walking Horse industry’s top trainers, Jackie McConnell, soring horses. McConnell, who pled guilty to violating the Horse Protection Act, can be seen beating horses with a pipe while they lie in their stalls. Horses are also shown with chains wrapped around deliberately-inflicted wounds on their hooves. In one especially disturbing clip, McConnell repeatedly electrocutes a horse.
Marty Irby, a former world-champion Tennessee Walking Horse competitor who recently became an anti-soring advocate, spoke to the committee on Wednesday about the industry’s problem. He said he became fed up with pretending that the abuse shown by ABC wasn’t a common practice.
“Should I continue to perpetuate the lie that the padded and chained performance Tennessee Walking Horses are mostly sound and a few bad [trainers] sore them, or should I recognize the truth: that all padded and chained Tennessee Walking Horses are either sore or have been sored?” Irby said. Irby, 34, comes from a long line of championship Tennessee Walking Horse breeders, and he told HuffPost that taking a public stand against the abuse has cost him his marriage, his career and his relationship with his parents.
In August, Blackburn observed horse inspections in person at the 2013 Celebration, the same annual horse show where inspectors found the shockingly high violation rate in 2012. The Tennessean reported that the top walking horse industry lobbying group, the Performance Show Horse Association (PSHA), hosted a campaign fundraiser for Blackburn during her visit. Guests paid $100 a ticket, according to the Tennessean.
Despite Blackburn’s attendance at the show, and the heightened caution following the damning ABC video, the 2013 Celebration still had major problems. Among them was the early elimination of Honors, one of the show’s most popular horses and a past champion, after inspectors found evidence of soring on his leg. And two horses belonging to Terry Dotson, the then-president of the PSHA, also failed their inspections, according to the Tennessean. Just days after hosting Blackburn, Dotson resigned his position as PSHA’s president.
Click (HERE) to comment directly at The Huffington Post
Related Articles
- Committee hears divergent views on anti-soring proposals (horsetalk.co.nz)
- Congress scrutinizes show-horse industry practice of ‘soring’ (sacbee.com)
- End Soring of Tennessee Walking Horses (huffingtonpost.com)
- Survey reveals backing for anti-soring legislation (horsetalk.co.nz)
Categories: Horse Health, Horse News
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
Marshal Blackburn has a number of radical and IMHO whacko ideas. This tops them all. Let us hope this bill passes with 233 co-sponsors in spite of her meddling.
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OOpps! Marsha certainly not Marshal.
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This is such a cruel and inhumane thing to be done to such a beautiful animal the suffering must be horrendous this must be banned and heavier sentences imposed on those who commit this act of pure abuse
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This performance is not natural and is damaging to the horses. This artificial movement is obtained by abusing the horses. I cannot see the question here. It is and should be illegal.
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Let’s stuff drano in her shoes and she how she likes it!
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OK — not a good reason to continue this brutality on horses! I think that if the majority of quests and audience of this Tennessee Walking group all knew of these methods, I do not think they would participate. Also, what about educating the people of Tennessee and Kentucky. Show them these videos — make it mandatory. There are a lot more people in these two states than their elected politicians supporting these greedy businesses — vote them out! If these two states do not do anything about this, where does it leave the rest of the country? Right now it seems to me that the only people with their eyes open, are the ones viewing these horrific tapes, who care and there is little they can do about it but get upset over the pure ignorance of the whole issue.
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Pamela, don’t be so naive, anyone that owns or rides one of these show horses knows exactly what is going on. This includes the groomers, trainers, owners, riders and vets. Anyone that steps foot in these barns know of the abuse and yes, it is extremely painful. The animals want to lay down because of the pain in their hooves and legs, then are beaten till they get up. Small children grow up in this environment so you can imagine what they think of animal and even people abuse. It’s not just in the Tennessee Walker, there is forms of abuse used in nearly every breed. Some cut the horses tongue nearly off with barbed wire to get the horse to drop it’s head, some whip the animal to get it hyper and put hot chemicals up it’s butt to get it to hold the tail high. Trainers too lazy to take time to do the job right will tie a horses head to its tail and leave it in the stall for hours to get the horse to limber up. I could write a book on the horrific methods of some trainers and trust me, most owners know exactly what is going on and just look the other way. These are not pets, they are status symbols. The whole horse industry needs cleaning up and attempts to do so, for the most part, have failed because of the money by the establishment to keep it status quo. So what if this breed dies out, think of all the pain that will not be suffered, besides many good walkers make good trail horses because they have not been abused like these show animals.
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Well said. What does this say about our society; that we are so hungry for prestige and money that we are willing to do anything to get it, including abuse and disfigurement of God’s creatures. I’ve seen some of these Walkers at shows that have such an exaggerated gait that I’m surprised they can walk at all with their rear ends so low. I find it extremely unattractive and unnatural, and it sickens and appalls me that they are abused in this manner. I certainly hope that karma is a bitch to all of these owners, trainers and judges that perpetuate this unnatural gait. I’m so happy that I have had the pleasure to work with two really wonderful trainers who actually love horses.
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I used to work with Tennessee Walking horses, and I can tell you that they are puppy dog sweet animals and much more personable then any other breed I have worked with. To see them treated like this is like watching a large man beat a chihuahua. When you see the horses ridden in the ring, look at the angle of their backs! They are almost trying to walk only on their back legs due to the pain of the front ones. This is no longer the Big Lick. Shame on the judges for supporting this super exaggerated form of the Big Lick. This is just as bad as seeing the German shepherd being breed into a deformation of its functional self, the slanted back and weak hind ends seen on the American GSD. Only imagine trying to MAKE a dog into that form with weights, acids and abuse. I no longer support Tennessee Walking horse shows.
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:O That is incredible. What gets me was that someone’s family was so determined to ignore the issue they would rather dump their son and husband over it.
Of course the regulations are excessive. Having to go to the government instead of regulating in the industry is excessive. But it HAS to be because the ISSUE IS excessive!
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Another sell-out . These elected officials who are supposed to represent the people of their state have sold their ethics to corporations and business. They don’t care about the cruel treatment of innocent animals, only money. VOTE her out.
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I’d like to wrap that chain around his neck and chain him to the back of my car !! Stupid damn idiot !!!
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This is heinous….what the hell is wrong with people ?? Karma….you need to hit him hard and fast !!
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I bet alot of the people in the audience at these shows actually do know what this Big Lick movement takes to achieve in these poor horses.
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OK SHOES ON THE RIGHT HOOF NOW! Whats that mean you ask. We support the bill were referenced as animal rights terrorists…..Now the Truth is Revealed…..she stood her ground as an anti animal terrorist….A person who is Against the Protection of animals. The terror of losing an Entire Breed because they cannot abuse them in order to scare supporters for her lies! I have yet to hear that every Tennessee Walker in the world will simply Vanish or Drop Dead the moment they support this bill to Save these animals. I think the Donk and Calvary Group paranoia and the Brainwashing Sessions just made this ladies brain get a little too thoroughly mixed in the blender. The Walking Horsez will be there, Shows will be successful. I will SEE to it that they recieve More Promotion, just like thw Mustangs we wont let this decline and abuse Continue! Selfish Bitch that this woman Is, these horses deserve.Better treatment. And if they dont want them after this passes, WE Do, people love Walkers, so what if a few morons cant do anything thats not synthetic, abusive, and enhanced to win. Then maybe these people will be on our level finally, where REAL showman dont cause harm and WIN! This nutjob is proving how many baffoons it takes to screw a horse…..Time we unscrew these horses and give them their life back. Toast to the breed, we will chase the abusers put YET!
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Soring of horses is no different than any other form of vile animal abuse and the punishments should be severe, including banning from the industry those trainers who use these horrendous methods and the owners who allow it to be done to their horses. But shame on the judges at these shows who continuously award the most exaggerated gaits on these beautiful animals. And if eliminating soring ends an industry based on abuse, so be it. It should never have flourished to begin with except for greed at the expense of a defenseless animal. Marsha Blackburn should be votyyed out of office at the earliest opportunity since it is apparent that she has been bought by the walking hoirse industry.y
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“This legislation brings excessive regulatory burdens on the walking horse industry…”Without this regulation, it brings excessive cruelty and pain to the Walking Horses who are the unpaid victims of the Industry.
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Not finding the ABC report referenced in the article… any idea where it is?
Viewing the clip provided…. makes me ashamed of our species. All I can think of is the parallel with how slaves were treated, sentient beings subjected to unbelievably harsh and unnecessarily cruel actions from those who “own” them, though they have no say in the matter. If they resist at all they are punished even more, for what essential purpose? It is simply heartbreaking to see those kind souls too sore to stand in their own stalls, but beaten if they lay down. Remind me how we can be considered the most highly evolved species?
As a kid I saw some TW in local shows, they were much more solid animals, with magnificent style and gaits, and level backs! They looked like they would be a pleasure to ride scouting plantations all day long. Can’t imagine any of these spindly legged, unnatural-moving horses even hold up for more than a few years.
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PS forgot to add, those TW I saw ages ago also showed with NORMAL HOOVES, not those giant galoshes or structurally pathological hooves.
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I have owned Tenn. Walkers for 20ys, I have, from the very beginning been disgusted by this. But it has gotten worse as time goes on, these trainers and judges are only looking for the bigger step and the higher foot and head. It doesn’t even matter if it is correct. Most of these horses don’t lift their feet up correctly to be considered a proper running walk, (and I am not just talking about the height) in order keep balance with those painful front feet both the feet on one side come up almost at the same time. this is not correct the lifting off and setting down should be separate, with the hind coming up first, in a steady EQUAL four beat rhythm. Then the Judges pick these horribly moving horses and they breed that one to make more walkers who don’t gait correctly, and they don’t care because they just will just put this crap on them, have them step torturously high and win because the judges let them. Then there is the fact that people are sick enough to watch this and participate in it. They bring down the whole industry and they will be the ones to destroy it if this bill isn’t passed. The worst thing is that there are lots of truly good people who would love to show on a national level, with their horses that aren’t sored and weighted, but don’t because there is no chance at competing so why waste the money? I love my walkers, they are the best horses I have ever been around, the most personable and willing to do anything you ask. My gelding, rides, drives, does trail, and is a great horse to put kids on. But this attitude is dependent on a good person to work with them. These people shouldn’t even be allowed to have a goldfish, much less such a magnificent animal as a Tennessee Walking Horse.
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Danielle, don’t want to start a war here but some of your arguments are equally valid for what wins in many other disciplines. There are matters of degree of course but forcing unnatural gaits to extremes to win a ribbon proves how kind horses are and how abusive people can be in the name of “fashion.”
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No war to start, the only thing I disagree with is the ‘unnatural’ part. Many of these horses do this gait with little help, even in the pasture. of course, there is training to refine and perfect it for show (not talking about the big lick here), but that is the same across any discipline. But as far as what other disciplines or breeds do, yes there are some extreme abuses there too, and the judges are to blame as much as the trainers for allowing that to continue. It is rather sick. Probably why I stick the local ‘fun’ shows and trail riding.
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Danielle, Yes! I have worked with many naturally gaited horses professionally, so didn’t mean to imply those were unnatural, just the exaggeration which isn’t, and is caused by extreme interventions and manipulations. I gave up showing a long time ago, realizing how far it takes us from what draws horses into our lives in the first place.
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Oh, sorry, I have had so many people tell me that I am making my horse move in unnatural ways and I must be cruel to him because of it that I try to educate that the gaits are natural, But your right, I don’t like that shows either and have stopped going. Shame it go to this point.
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This treatment of horses just defies imagination. I cannot imagine how they are allowed to get away with this. Regulatory burdens on this abusive ‘industry’? They need to be shut down, period.
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That is the most disgusting thing I have ever watched. How can these people get away with the treatment of these wonderful horses. Someone needs to take those trainers out back and beat them till they can’t stand up. I don’t know how in this day and age that this kind of cruelty is still being inflicted on these animal. I am sorry, but the trainer and his workers are the most despicable excuse for human beings, makes me sick!
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We need regulation regarding everything Equine. They are so exploited,at every level. It is imperative that we get this industry regulated in order to change this inhumane and unconscionable cruelty against them for profit or disdain for their species. This must be done and soon. We all should be requesting that they be treated with dignity, compassion and be given given respect and humane treatment as all other companions animals are.
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This abhorrence of systematic abuse to these poor horses is sickening and must be stopped now it is barbaric this congress woman why would she do this pure evil.
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It is shocking to me to see that this can still happen to these horses in this day and age. These people should know better and this needs to stop now!! I just don’t get how anyone can get enjoyment out of some of these crazy “sports” that include the abuse of any animal!!
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Hate to say it – but every discipline has its cruelty. Watch the so-called western pleasure classes, for instance. I am assuming that nothing has changed in the past 10 or 15 years – these poor sad babies – some less than 2- scuffling along with their heads hanging low doing what passes for “jog”. Some of the practices used by dressage people – not all – but many – its just brutal to the horses. How sad that anytime these animals help us or entertain us – there are always people using them for money or power or whatever. But the Walkers ? that’s downright inhumane – whats done to them.
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Maggie, I agree. I think the deal with TWs is that what they do is so much more visible than what happens in other disciplines, far from the show ring. Alcohol blocks, jugging, all sorts of extreme draw reins and Rollkur “training” are a few of those less visible examples. I wonder why horses keep on trying for us?
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