Information compiled by Nancy Brannon, Ph.D.
USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is proposing regulation changes to revise and strengthen the Horse Protection Act to better protect horses from the cruel and inhumane practice of soring. USDA’s proposal to amend the current regulations would make two significant changes:
• USDA would train, license and screen all horse inspectors. Currently, horse industry organizations handle these responsibilities, but in a 2010 audit, the Office of Inspector General stated this regulatory structure is ineffective because many industry-trained inspectors have conflicts of interest. Under the proposed rule, inspectors would be independent veterinarians or animal health technicians who are licensed by USDA and have no affiliation with any horse industry organizations. USDA would oversee this new group of independent inspectors.
• USDA would prohibit the use of all action devices, pads and foreign substances that may be used to sore horses. Action devices include boots, collars, chains or rollers that are placed on a horse’s lower leg to accentuate the animal’s gait. Pads (or weights) are often stacked and inserted between the hoof and shoe and then tightened into place with metal bands around the hoof. With respect to foreign substances, the regulations currently prohibit the use of chemical irritants such as mustard oil, diesel fuel and kerosene that are applied to a horse’s legs, while allowing the use of lubricants, at certain times, provided by show management. The proposed rule seeks to prohibit all foreign substances, including lubricants.
The public comment period for these new regulations runs from July 26 – September 26, 2016. Interested persons can view the entire regulatory docket and submit comments online at this address: http://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=APHIS-2011-0009.
In addition to accepting comments online, USDA hosts five public meetings to gather additional comments: four in-person meetings and one virtual meeting. USDA representatives preside at each public hearing, but they do not respond to comments at the hearings – except to clarify the proposed regulation changes. The public hearing schedule is:
Tuesday, August 9: Murfreesboro, TN, Wednesday, August 10: Lexington, KY, Tuesday, August 16: Sacramento, CA, Tuesday, September 6: Riverdale, MD, and Thursday, September 15: Virtual public meeting, 5 p.m. EDT.
Several news sources reported about the contentious, hostile atmosphere of the Murfreesboro, TN meeting on August 9, 2016. There was “standing room only” as the Embassy Suites meeting room was packed with an estimated 250-275 people. “All were there to weigh in on a proposed USDA rule change meant to cut down on an illegal practice called soring that is used to give Tennessee Walking Horses their distinctive exaggerated gait in competitions,” reported Nashville’s News Channel 5.com.
Clant Seay with the Citizens Campaign Against ‘Big Lick’ Animal Cruelty said that soring “is animal cruelty; you cannot do it without the suffering and pain of horses,” reported News Channel 5.com.
Jeffrey Howard, a member of the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Walking Horse Celebration, said, “The equipment, if utilized correctly, absolutely provides no harm to the horse,” reported News Channel5.com. Speaking of the TWH Celebration, Howard said, “The Celebration itself gives a couple hundred thousand dollars a year in concession sales to civic clubs in Shelbyville.”
Animal rights groups contend the devices enable the soring and exacerbate the animal cruelty, and that charitable giving is no justification for hurting animals.
“The rules are supported by many in the horse industry, including the American Horse Council, the U.S. Equestrian Federation, the American Association of Equine Practitioners, the American Veterinary Medical Association and numerous state veterinary groups,” wrote Janet Patton for the Lexington Herald-Leader.
“The hearing in Lexington opened with a representative of U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Somerset, reading a prepared statement decrying the rules as ‘unnecessary, heavy-handed regulation’ designed to intimidate and dismantle most of the walking horse industry. It ‘will impose significant and severe economic hardship on families, small businesses and communities across Kentucky, Tennessee and other states that depend on this industry for their livelihoods,’ Rogers said in the statement,” Patton reported.
Jeannie McGuire, president of the All American Walking Horse Alliance, said that there are two sides to the livelihood story. She said many people she works with have lost their livelihood ‘as a result of the reputation of the performance horse – the stigma, the soring [associated with] the Big Lick,” Patton reported.
To summarize the comments reported through the media, opponents of the new regulations generally cited the financial loss – to those who now own padded (Big Lick) walking horses and to horse show facilities and charities who benefit from shows that feature padded walking horses. There were predictions that more walking horses would be sent to slaughter or euthanized because there would be such a drop in the monetary value of the padded horses. Opponents also accused USDA of subjective tests. Some argued that chains and pads do no harm to the horses.
Advocates of the new regulations generally cited protection of horses that are currently being subjected to inhumane treatment, and stopping the abuse of horses to win show ribbons.
To evaluate the validity of competing arguments, it is helpful to consult an objective, reliable source of information. The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) published a comprehensive document on soring in May 2015 that answers many of these contradictory claims. The 60-page “Horse Soring Booklet” is available at: https://www.avma.org/KB/Resources/Reference/AnimalWelfare/Documents/Soring%20Bookiet%20March%202014.pdf. Following is information gleaned from this white paper to answer questions.
What about pads? “Although the industry says ‘there’s no science to suggest that chains and pads cause problems,’ the science shows that raising the heels (placing a horse on pads and wedges) 8 degrees can cause the horse to stumble and tire easily. Horses placed on pads and wedges showed inflammation in the flexor tendon area of the pastern.” (page 13)
What about chains and action devices? “The science says that chains that weigh 6 ounces will start to cause hair loss without the use of chemical irritants. Chains heavier than 6 ounces used on horses that have been previously sored will cause open lesions within two weeks.” (page 13)
What about DQPs? The findings of a 2010 Office of Inspector General Audit concluded that APHIS should abolish the DQP program because of the problems and conflicts of interest observed with DQPs. The Audit described the hostile environment during inspections that APHIS employees face, and that they must bring armed security or police with them to shows. (page 22)
If not DQPs, who should inspect? “USDA Veterinary Medical Officers with an extra corps of trained veterinarians.” (p. 29) The pages following describe the training and objective evaluation tools used in inspections, i.e., thermographic screening, swabbing, blood sampling, and EyeD to identify horses via iris scans.
Page 37 begins the AAEP white paper, “Putting the Horse First: Veterinary Recommendations for Ending the Soring of Tennessee Walking Horses.” Page 38 describes the “culture of abuse” that perpetuates soring.
In response to allegations of subjective testing by USDA, pages 39 ff describe the “Improved Methods of Evaluation” and how they could be implemented. These objective methods include thermography, digital radiographic assessment, among others.
Page 42 states: “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.” They cite the “U.S. Equestrian Federation, the national governing body for equestrian sport in the U.S., which disallows action devices in the show ring for all recognized national affiliates.”
Page 44 states: “Performance packages (also called stacks or pads), made of plastic, leather, wood, rubber and combinations of these materials, attached below the sole of the horse’s natural hoof with a metal band that runs around the hoof wall to maintain them in place, 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.”
Finally, pages 49-60 reproduce the often-cited “Auburn Study:” Thermography in Diagnosis of Inflammatory Processes in Horses in Response to Various Chemical and Physical Factors, (Summary of the Research from Sept. 1978 to Dec. 1982), by Dr. Ram C. Purohit.
This 60-page AVMA document is available for download, and all interested persons can post comments to USDA at: http://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=APHIS-2011-0009
Sources:
Shelbyville Times-Gazette – August 10, 2016, by Jason Reynolds:
http://www.t-g.com/story/2329184.html
Lexington Herald-Leader, Kentucky – August 10, 2016, by: Janet Patton
http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/article94835952.html
Roy Exum’s op-ed about the regulations controversy is available at The Chattanoogan: http://www.chattanoogan.com/2016/8/11/329710/Roy-Exum-Big-Lick--Red-Neck.aspx
Photo credit: Copyright © 2016 Billy Go Boy www.billygoboy.com
USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is proposing regulation changes to revise and strengthen the Horse Protection Act to better protect horses from the cruel and inhumane practice of soring. USDA’s proposal to amend the current regulations would make two significant changes:
• USDA would train, license and screen all horse inspectors. Currently, horse industry organizations handle these responsibilities, but in a 2010 audit, the Office of Inspector General stated this regulatory structure is ineffective because many industry-trained inspectors have conflicts of interest. Under the proposed rule, inspectors would be independent veterinarians or animal health technicians who are licensed by USDA and have no affiliation with any horse industry organizations. USDA would oversee this new group of independent inspectors.
• USDA would prohibit the use of all action devices, pads and foreign substances that may be used to sore horses. Action devices include boots, collars, chains or rollers that are placed on a horse’s lower leg to accentuate the animal’s gait. Pads (or weights) are often stacked and inserted between the hoof and shoe and then tightened into place with metal bands around the hoof. With respect to foreign substances, the regulations currently prohibit the use of chemical irritants such as mustard oil, diesel fuel and kerosene that are applied to a horse’s legs, while allowing the use of lubricants, at certain times, provided by show management. The proposed rule seeks to prohibit all foreign substances, including lubricants.
The public comment period for these new regulations runs from July 26 – September 26, 2016. Interested persons can view the entire regulatory docket and submit comments online at this address: http://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=APHIS-2011-0009.
In addition to accepting comments online, USDA hosts five public meetings to gather additional comments: four in-person meetings and one virtual meeting. USDA representatives preside at each public hearing, but they do not respond to comments at the hearings – except to clarify the proposed regulation changes. The public hearing schedule is:
Tuesday, August 9: Murfreesboro, TN, Wednesday, August 10: Lexington, KY, Tuesday, August 16: Sacramento, CA, Tuesday, September 6: Riverdale, MD, and Thursday, September 15: Virtual public meeting, 5 p.m. EDT.
Several news sources reported about the contentious, hostile atmosphere of the Murfreesboro, TN meeting on August 9, 2016. There was “standing room only” as the Embassy Suites meeting room was packed with an estimated 250-275 people. “All were there to weigh in on a proposed USDA rule change meant to cut down on an illegal practice called soring that is used to give Tennessee Walking Horses their distinctive exaggerated gait in competitions,” reported Nashville’s News Channel 5.com.
Clant Seay with the Citizens Campaign Against ‘Big Lick’ Animal Cruelty said that soring “is animal cruelty; you cannot do it without the suffering and pain of horses,” reported News Channel 5.com.
Jeffrey Howard, a member of the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Walking Horse Celebration, said, “The equipment, if utilized correctly, absolutely provides no harm to the horse,” reported News Channel5.com. Speaking of the TWH Celebration, Howard said, “The Celebration itself gives a couple hundred thousand dollars a year in concession sales to civic clubs in Shelbyville.”
Animal rights groups contend the devices enable the soring and exacerbate the animal cruelty, and that charitable giving is no justification for hurting animals.
“The rules are supported by many in the horse industry, including the American Horse Council, the U.S. Equestrian Federation, the American Association of Equine Practitioners, the American Veterinary Medical Association and numerous state veterinary groups,” wrote Janet Patton for the Lexington Herald-Leader.
“The hearing in Lexington opened with a representative of U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Somerset, reading a prepared statement decrying the rules as ‘unnecessary, heavy-handed regulation’ designed to intimidate and dismantle most of the walking horse industry. It ‘will impose significant and severe economic hardship on families, small businesses and communities across Kentucky, Tennessee and other states that depend on this industry for their livelihoods,’ Rogers said in the statement,” Patton reported.
Jeannie McGuire, president of the All American Walking Horse Alliance, said that there are two sides to the livelihood story. She said many people she works with have lost their livelihood ‘as a result of the reputation of the performance horse – the stigma, the soring [associated with] the Big Lick,” Patton reported.
To summarize the comments reported through the media, opponents of the new regulations generally cited the financial loss – to those who now own padded (Big Lick) walking horses and to horse show facilities and charities who benefit from shows that feature padded walking horses. There were predictions that more walking horses would be sent to slaughter or euthanized because there would be such a drop in the monetary value of the padded horses. Opponents also accused USDA of subjective tests. Some argued that chains and pads do no harm to the horses.
Advocates of the new regulations generally cited protection of horses that are currently being subjected to inhumane treatment, and stopping the abuse of horses to win show ribbons.
To evaluate the validity of competing arguments, it is helpful to consult an objective, reliable source of information. The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) published a comprehensive document on soring in May 2015 that answers many of these contradictory claims. The 60-page “Horse Soring Booklet” is available at: https://www.avma.org/KB/Resources/Reference/AnimalWelfare/Documents/Soring%20Bookiet%20March%202014.pdf. Following is information gleaned from this white paper to answer questions.
What about pads? “Although the industry says ‘there’s no science to suggest that chains and pads cause problems,’ the science shows that raising the heels (placing a horse on pads and wedges) 8 degrees can cause the horse to stumble and tire easily. Horses placed on pads and wedges showed inflammation in the flexor tendon area of the pastern.” (page 13)
What about chains and action devices? “The science says that chains that weigh 6 ounces will start to cause hair loss without the use of chemical irritants. Chains heavier than 6 ounces used on horses that have been previously sored will cause open lesions within two weeks.” (page 13)
What about DQPs? The findings of a 2010 Office of Inspector General Audit concluded that APHIS should abolish the DQP program because of the problems and conflicts of interest observed with DQPs. The Audit described the hostile environment during inspections that APHIS employees face, and that they must bring armed security or police with them to shows. (page 22)
If not DQPs, who should inspect? “USDA Veterinary Medical Officers with an extra corps of trained veterinarians.” (p. 29) The pages following describe the training and objective evaluation tools used in inspections, i.e., thermographic screening, swabbing, blood sampling, and EyeD to identify horses via iris scans.
Page 37 begins the AAEP white paper, “Putting the Horse First: Veterinary Recommendations for Ending the Soring of Tennessee Walking Horses.” Page 38 describes the “culture of abuse” that perpetuates soring.
In response to allegations of subjective testing by USDA, pages 39 ff describe the “Improved Methods of Evaluation” and how they could be implemented. These objective methods include thermography, digital radiographic assessment, among others.
Page 42 states: “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.” They cite the “U.S. Equestrian Federation, the national governing body for equestrian sport in the U.S., which disallows action devices in the show ring for all recognized national affiliates.”
Page 44 states: “Performance packages (also called stacks or pads), made of plastic, leather, wood, rubber and combinations of these materials, attached below the sole of the horse’s natural hoof with a metal band that runs around the hoof wall to maintain them in place, 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.”
Finally, pages 49-60 reproduce the often-cited “Auburn Study:” Thermography in Diagnosis of Inflammatory Processes in Horses in Response to Various Chemical and Physical Factors, (Summary of the Research from Sept. 1978 to Dec. 1982), by Dr. Ram C. Purohit.
This 60-page AVMA document is available for download, and all interested persons can post comments to USDA at: http://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=APHIS-2011-0009
Sources:
Shelbyville Times-Gazette – August 10, 2016, by Jason Reynolds:
http://www.t-g.com/story/2329184.html
Lexington Herald-Leader, Kentucky – August 10, 2016, by: Janet Patton
http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/article94835952.html
Roy Exum’s op-ed about the regulations controversy is available at The Chattanoogan: http://www.chattanoogan.com/2016/8/11/329710/Roy-Exum-Big-Lick--Red-Neck.aspx
Photo credit: Copyright © 2016 Billy Go Boy www.billygoboy.com
