I think that’s a good analogy.
It would be nice if they didn’t have to spend so much time and money developing new drug testing protocols but a look at the list of drug violations shows that it’s necessary.
USEF obviously tests horses, many COTH members can attest to that. A friend had her horse tested when she showed him in a Dressage Sport Horse Prospect class (in hand) which I thought was odd, he didn’t look sleepy at all
, but the testers certainly are out there even at relatively small shows.
USEF has really lagged behind in penalizing the poor treatment and abuse of horses though. IMHO they should have thrown the book at Devin Ryan, but that was years ago and they didn’t, and I don’t understand why.
I’m not sure why USEF has been dragging its feet where horse abuse is concerned but they can’t go on doing that, they need to come down hard on abusers .
The penalties in the rulebook for doping and abuse have been increased but are guidelines and are not mandatory. I understand that members deserve a fair shake, however USEF could toughen up. It seems like they are doing everything possible to avoid litigation, which is close to impossible in the U.S. and shouldn’t be the main concern when dealing with people who they know have violated the rules.