[QUOTE=WalkInTheWoods;6340205]
Another writer at the Tennessean keeping it real.
http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120525/NEWS21/30525004
TN attorney general asked to investigate soring
Show managers have a duty, Humane Society says
The Humane Society of the United States asked Tennessee’s attorney general Thursday to investigate the role horse show management plays in allowing sored horses to compete.
Soring, an abusive practice aimed at producing a higher gait among walking horses, is illegal under federal and state law.
In a letter to Attorney General Robert Cooper, the Humane Society said state law imposes a duty on show management to disqualify anyone showing a sored horse and to report the violations to local prosecutors. Failing to do so is a misdemeanor.
“Tennessee has a good tool to improve the chances that the walking horse industry will think twice before abusing horses to cheat in these competitions,” Keith Dane, the Humane Society’s director of equine protection, said in a statement.
“Show managers are currently either unaware of their duty to report sored horses or are thumbing their noses at the law.”
Sharon Curtis-Flair, a spokeswoman for Cooper, said the attorney general’s office received the Humane Society’s letter Thursday afternoon.
She called the allegations “serious” and said the office will review the Humane Society’s letter and determine what actions to take.
Industry vows crackdown
Tennessee Walking Horses have a naturally high gait. But over the years, some trainers figured out that the training could go faster if they burned the horse’s ankles, a practice known as soring.
Dripping harsh chemicals on the horses’ front ankles forces them, because of pain, to lift their legs higher. The walk is prized in walking horse competitions.
Walking horse industry groups have pledged for decades to crack down on soring. Leading industry groups condemn the practice and say a small number of trainers are giving the sport a bad reputation.
But dozens of owners and trainers are on suspension for the practice and with the recent release of undercover video detailing soring and other abuses, the Humane Society is asking federal and state officials to do more.
In the letter to the state, Jonathan Lovvorn, a Humane Society senior vice president, said the case of trainer Jackie L. McConnell proves the need for more action. The Humane Society secretly filmed McConnell at his barn soring and beating horses.
McConnell pleaded guilty in federal court this week to felony conspiracy to violating the federal Horse Protection Act. He faces separate state animal cruelty charges in Fayette County.
Industry groups have been quick to ban McConnell from their events, including the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration in Shelbyville. The Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders’ and Exhibitors’ Association was the latest, barring him Thursday from transferring or registering any walking horse in his name.
Based on his guilty plea, Lovvorn said the Humane Society is concerned that, when McConnell entered sored horses into competitions, show organizers probably never reported the problems to authorities.
“We respectfully request that you open an investigation into this problem, make horse show managers aware of their legal obligations, and take steps to prosecute those that have not conducted themselves in the matter required by Tennessee law,” Lovvorn wrote.
Contact Duane W. Gang at 615-726-5982 or dgang@tennessean.com[/QUOTE]
Cough… Cough… OMG!!! The hghlighted area is totally false and laughable.
This breed and the so called signature gait is not NATURALLY high stepping.
It is a sweeping swinging gait; low reaching and beautifully balanced(and a thrill to ride!).
Unless you consider the “blocks of wood” of the “less hysterical” thread to be “natural.”
It is h.y.s.t.e.r.i.c.a.l. that anyone would post that picture of the stacked horse and not think people would be shocked at the stacks.
Lordy, I think I could actually work for HSUS. I remember making the comment that show and breed organizations need to take the legal heat on this, big time.
It is too much to expect any show organization or breed association actually self police or act on behalf of the equestrian community or the wellfare of the horse. I mean do you all hear the official roar of condemnation from any other professional horseman’s association??? ANd the reason is they are not governed or willing to follow a higher authority - Think about why places like ENgland do not hav the huge problems like this TWH mess.
Cause they have a higher authoriy professional organizational structure requiring licencing etc etc to participate in the trade.
Think about it and look at the video. And listen to the silence of the other professional associations on this matter. WHere is the condemnation???
Other than those that have been in the trenches fighting this crap for 40 years - they are all pretty silent.
So I am VERY glad to hear HSUS is gonna drain the sloth’s pockets a little more.
Drain em Dane!!!
Heck the entire equestrian community looked the other way till HSUS lit the world on fire. Not for nothing, I think HSUS has the money and the right approach on this equestrian problem.
Screw the protests. Fund HSUS on this.
Cause reasonablenes will not work with a crowd of folks that have come to view something as horrid as a stacked horse’s foot as beautiful or acceptable.
