Another habitual violator. They really need to do a 3 strikes or something.
[QUOTE=katarine;6393236]
http://www.walkinghorseworld.com/PDFC-cotten,%20joe%20Copy_0.png
http://www.walkinghorseworld.com/PDFC-cotten,%20joe%20Copy_1.png[/QUOTE]
It’s one thing to impose a penalty; it’s quite another to enforce it.
I work for our local DA and we routinely see fines and court costs imposed for various offenses. Persons are put on supervised probation until fines and costs are paid (they also pay a monthly fee for the probation officer). Chatting with our Clerk of Courts she told me that our county is owed millions of dollars in unpaid fines and costs. Most of this money will never be collected. But under the prior clerk of courts there was never any systematic attempt to collect these monies. The new Clerk is making an effort, even though it will likely result in little money.
Under our DUI laws a first offense requires 48 hours in jail. It must be served within one year of the conviction. Before we built a new and bigger jail house a significant number of DUI sentences were never served because the old jail was always full (and overcrowded). You, literally, had to make an appointment to serve your time. Lots of convicted persons just got lost in the shuffle and never served an hour.
So I’ll wait and see if these stronger penalties are actually enforced, or just handed down with a “wink and a nod.”
G.
[QUOTE=Guilherme;6393253]
It’s one thing to impose a penalty; it’s quite another to enforce it.
I work for our local DA and we routinely see fines and court costs imposed for various offenses. Persons are put on supervised probation until fines and costs are paid (they also pay a monthly fee for the probation officer). Chatting with our Clerk of Courts she told me that our county is owed millions of dollars in unpaid fines and costs. Most of this money will never be collected. But under the prior clerk of courts there was never any systematic attempt to collect these monies. The new Clerk is making an effort, even though it will likely result in little money.
Under our DUI laws a first offense requires 48 hours in jail. It must be served within one year of the conviction. Before we built a new and bigger jail house a significant number of DUI sentences were never served because the old jail was always full (and overcrowded). You, literally, had to make an appointment to serve your time. Lots of convicted persons just got lost in the shuffle and never served an hour.
So I’ll wait and see if these stronger penalties are actually enforced, or just handed down with a “wink and a nod.”
G.[/QUOTE]
Thank you for your stories.
It is so interesting to learn how other worlds function, or not.
Food for thought, indeed.
I think that we are in a changing world, where anyone can watch and prove what anyone else does and at the same time, those with extremists agendas can use that against what most of us do innocently and in good faith, twisting that information to look sinister.
I was thinking it is great to be able to present terrible abuses and hang the abusers best we can with the laws we have, as here.
Not so good when that is used to make all horse owners look guilty by association, just by being horse owners.:eek:
[QUOTE=WalkInTheWoods;6391233]
Story and graphic pics of a sored up 3 year old taken recently.
http://forthetnwalkinghorse.blogspot.com/2012/06/news-new-sored-horse-photos-pop-up.html[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=katarine;6393236]http://www.walkinghorseworld.com/PDFC-cotten,%20joe%20Copy_0.png
http://www.walkinghorseworld.com/PDFC-cotten,%20joe%20Copy_1.png[/QUOTE]
Same trainer and horse.
[QUOTE=WalkInTheWoods;6393233]
Hard to say. Getting rid of the bad eggs may strengthen the breed and bring folks back into showing. Oregon is a good test case.[/QUOTE]
Oregon is a good test case. As for people coming back to showing, that may well happen. I’ve never shown b/c I wanted nothing to do with the TWH world as we know it. My TWH was a BL in a former life, I promised him when I bought him he’d never be shown again. I would’ve probably bought a TWH that had never been shown to show if things in the show world had been different for the horses. I know I’m not the only one who feels this way.
If those truly are pics of the mare Jose Wine and Roses and they were taken by Joe Cotten as soon as he got her two weeks ago, then he is not the only bad guy. Those heels sure dont look “just clipped” (by Joe) and they couldnt have gotten in that condition in 2 weeks anyway. Not surprised the mare hasnt shown in in 2012. She may have passed inspection last year but she is unshown this year. I would also wonder about the vet that the Murphys took the mare to. Is he saying the condition of those heels just happened ? This Joe guy is a bad character, but i wonder if SHOW’s actions are more to shut him up, or more to protect Landrum and the Murphys. Or to show the public they are working to go after the bad guys ? I think Joe’s mouth got him in trouble more than his actions. I bet he has a whole lot more to say. Very messy.
[QUOTE=WalkInTheWoods;6393360]
If those truly are pics of the mare Jose Wine and Roses and they were taken by Joe Cotten as soon as he got her two weeks ago, then he is not the only bad guy. Those heels sure dont look “just clipped” (by Joe) and they couldnt have gotten in that condition in 2 weeks anyway. Not surprised the mare hasnt shown in in 2012. She may have passed inspection last year but she is unshown this year. I would also wonder about the vet that the Murphys took the mare to. Is he saying the condition of those heels just happened ? This Joe guy is a bad character, but i wonder if SHOW’s actions are more to shut him up, or more to protect Landrum and the Murphys. Or to show the public they are working to go after the bad guys ? I think Joe’s mouth got him in trouble more than his actions. I bet he has a whole lot more to say. Very messy.[/QUOTE]
The whole thing just looks like a big cluster.
And apparently Cotten knew something was coming his way from SHOW, with “dropping the hammer” comment that was quoted in the blog post.
The initial impression I got from reading the blog was that they were going after him for dropping the dime on the other trainer.
Now it looks like it may be a case of knowing he was going down, and making sure he didn’t go alone.
Roy Exum: A Walking Horse ‘No Show’
Saturday, June 23, 2012 - by Roy Exum
Roy Exum For weeks an eagerly-awaited showdown has loomed in the Tennessee Walking Horse industry after a lifetime member of the group’s Walking Horse Breeders and Exhibitors Association issued a challenge to fellow board member Keith Dane, who also heads the equine protection division for the Humane Society of the United States.
But, with little if any warning, a closed hearing to oust Dane from the group, which was scheduled for Friday in Lewisburg, was abruptly cancelled and a letter allegedly written by Kathy Zeis – who was identified as the person who lodged the formal complaint, leaves little doubt the longtime Walking Horse advocate was “thrown under the bus” by the SHOW group’s executive committee.
Dane, of course, fell under heavy scrutiny in May when he released an undercover video obtained by the Humane Society to the ABC news show, “Nightline.” The shocking video shows graphic footage of Collierville trainer Jackie McConnell beating a horse with an electric cattle prod and showed another horse “crying like a baby” due to the pain that was inflicted on other animals in McConnell’s barns.
But Zeis alleges her complaint against Dane was filed before the video ever appeared. “I lodged a complaint against Keith Dane on March 12, 2012. That complaint was returned to me and a protocol was sent to me to follow in order to file a complaint. As I understand several other people also filed a complaint but did not follow up with the complex protocol.
“My complaint was resubmitted and received by TWHBEA mid-April. The substance of my complaint was that in his public comments (Dane) has said as a representative of HSUS that all walking horses entering the ring are sored and doing an unnatural gait. He has also said that performance horses in particular are doing an unnatural gait that is achieved by soring. He believes that the USDA isn’t doing their job in keeping such horses out of the show ring.”
Obviously this isn’t the truth because many show animals are “clean” – as Dane has told news reporters numerous times – and he and Zeis share the belief that sound horses are still magnificent competitors. “If he had continued to advocate and work for sound horses I would have had absolutely no problem,” she wrote in her widely distributed letter.“
But (Dane) has come out as a director of TWHBEA and an officiate of HSUS,” Zeis wrote, “to say that all horses that enter the show ring are exhibiting an unnatural gait produced by soring and, with all the other opinions that he has put out, in my opinion he has done incalculable harm to the Tennessee Walking Show Horse and to the Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders’ and Exhibitors’ Association.”
After Zeis’ complaint, things soon began to get muddy. With the McConnell tape going viral and thousands of violations of the federal Horse Protection Act quickly coming to light, Zeis wrote, “I am saddened that the TWHBEA Executive Committee doesn’t have the same devotion to the breed that many of its owners do and promote and defend all disciplines of the breed that are trained soundly regardless of the division or discipline. Just as I have defended the pleasure horse when that wasn’t popular at TWHBEA I now defend the performance horse when he is trained correctly.”
Three veterinarians’ group have harpooned the walking horse industry this week, Jackie McConell is getting ready for state charges and federal actions will begin next month in Tennessee. Public perception is at an all-time low and veteran trainers are rightfully worried that signs of violations and abuse still persist.
So why did she withdraw her complaint just two weeks ago? She felt betrayed. “I am withdrawing my complaint due to the fact that even though all the protocols in the past have deemed that a complaint be kept confidential, this one was put out to the national press and public by TWHBEA’s President Marty Irby.”
Zeis said that since she was bound on confidentiality, “I have received threatening and abusive e-mails from the public without any knowledge of what my complaint was about or what I was trying to accomplish.”
There is some belief Zeis was being used as a pawn – since public sentiment was solidly behind Dane and an ever-growing disdain for abusing Walking Horses has reached both the state and federal governments, so Zeis did what any of us would have done – dropped the complaint squarely on the toes of Marty Irby and his now beleaguered Executive Committee.
“I believe in this breed. I believe in the owners. I believe in the trainers who want to use correct training methods,” she wrote. “I believe that there needs to be an objective qualitative way to judge that a horse has been abused - not a subjective test that can cause a person who is not guilty to be punished because his horse is acting like a horse. I also believe in timely intervention when abuse is detected."
5
Follow up by ABC news.
[QUOTE=GaitedGloryRider;6393297]
Same trainer and horse.[/QUOTE]
Turning on themselves. Very good!
Some years ago, I created a 100-mile endurance ride called the Race
of Champions. There was massive competitive energy surrounding
the event, as you can imagine when the best of the best in the nation
came together to crown the BEST. I felt a profound responsibility
for the safety of the horses, knowing that when you put the goals of
the rider above the well being of the horse, bad things can happen.
Each year, as 100 horses and riders gathered at the starting line at
the break of dawn, I asked everyone to bow their heads and over the
loudspeaker…I would pray. “Please Lord, keep all of these horses and
riders and all the people involved with the race today safe. And please,
put on the rider’s hearts that there is nothing in prizes or glory at the
finish line that is worth more than the health and well being of their
horses.” Every year, riders (of all faiths) would come to me and say the
prayer calmed their spirits and focused their priorities.
We have a CANCER in our equine industry that has been allowed to
go on too long, and it is time to eradicate it NOW. Tennessee Walking
Horses have a naturally high-stepping gait, but over the years trainers
have used special shoes and metal chains to encourage an even higher
step. Eventually, some figured that the training could go faster if they
burned the horses’ ankles, a practice known as soring. Dripping harsh
chemicals on the horses’ front ankles forces them, because of the pain, to
lift their legs even higher and shift their weight to their back legs, giving
them the “big lick” gait for which the judges award ribbons and money.
The Walking Horse industry has pledged for more than three
decades to crack down on soring, but it is public record that the MAJORITY
of those who sit on the governing boards of the breed have
at least one Protective Act VIOLATION on their records. They pay lip
service to “cracking down,” but when you have the leadership as part
of the abuse problem, you aren’t going to get any meaningful changes.
The barbaric, inhumane torture of these beautiful, kind horses
could end in a New York minute if the breed associations and horse
show management would step up and do the right thing. Instead, the
top organizations plead their case to maintain unnatural pads and
“action devices” based on their
need to generate more money
and membership at the shows.
Quoting from a letter from the
top breed association to the
USDA: “I plead with the USDA
to give serious consideration to
economic factors, jobs, horse
farmers … and I challenge the
USDA to stand up for our industry and not succumb to the pressures
of animal rights activists who have no equity or vested interest.” It’s all
about money for them, and the horse be damned.
A few years back, I rode the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim solo on a
Tennessee Walker gelding (shown in this photo), and he was the most
beautiful, smart, kind, lovely horse I ever had the privilege to ride. These
horses are truly amazing athletes, and why so many inside the industry
don’t see the value of promoting the breed in a way that does not involve
abuse and torture is beyond comprehension. So little has changed
in the last 30 years that I don’t believe there is going to be an end to
this horrific practice anytime soon—without massive intervention.
I believe the only way this can change is for the entire horse industry
to stand up with one voice and say THIS STOPS NOW. We need to
write letters to government leaders on a national, state and local level.
We need to protest and picket horse shows—and their sponsors—to
keep the light shining on them without let-up. Let us all give our voices
(and prayers) to set these beautiful horses free from their abusive lives.
In the months ahead, Trail Blazer Magazine will show you ways in
which you can truly be an advocate for the Tennessee Walking Horse,
because what the industry is doing is evil, and there is nothing in prizes
or glory that is worth more than the health and well being of the horse.
Susana Gibson | founder Trail Blazer Magazine
Amen.
Great article. I like the way she thinks. And thanks hurleycane for posting that Tennessean article earlier 
[QUOTE=katarine;6393110]
So I understand that the government showed up at the Athens show last night. Hardly anyone bothered to get their horses inspected. [/QUOTE]
Do you mean that, rather than go through the inspection, they chose not to show?
yes. that particular inspector has a bit of a reputation, but seriously…30 classes…yet only 5-6 classes were held. So flat shod, lite shod, sorta shod…everything PLUS the padded horses said no thanks. they left.
There were 30 classes but only 12 horses showed.
1 Lead Line
1 Lite Shod
1 2 yr old mare/gelding riders cup
2 AOT
4 Country Pleasure
2 Trail Pleasure
1 Championship
That is GREAT news as far as the show numbers. You can’t put on a show if the classes can’t be filled. They MUST finally have the you-know-what scared out of them.
Athens always has been pretty much BL country. We bought a wonderful son of Pride of Midnight in Athens, Georgia. He was being sold because he couldn’t pass inspection any more because of the scar rule- he had a noticeable callous on one pastern and you could feel a smaller lump on the other. We bought him because he was out of the same mare that our favorite stallion was out of and he was getting up in years.
After my husband died, he had a decent career as a stud in Texas. He lived into his 20s and I was told by his last owner that he passed away in the night without any sign of struggle in his stall. She had him buried on her ranch, which was right as she had owned him longer than any of his previous owners. He was a very even tempered stallion, but not as sweet as our Robert.
I just read on another forum that the TWH show in Buckhead, Ga. was cancelled tonight (Sat). The USDA inspectors showed up and all but 6 of the exhibitors loaded up their trailers and left. Also, another BL TWH trainer was fined and suspended for 7 1/2 years. I guess it’s getting pretty hot in BL TWH-Land.
Well, first it will be 12.
To those who did show, high 5! You are the start of something good. Glad the USDA is showing, too.
For sure there will also be a few more problems to try and show. Hopefully, they will merely represent the dying gasp.
All that is needed now is da ban on the action devices in the ring.
Thanks all for posting that news. I believe soring/BL is dying, indeed last gasps. Still wish those trailers had been stopped.
