The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is continuing to move more swiftly and consistently to take enforcement action in response to animal welfare violations.
Enforcement of Horse Protection Act
The HPA is the federal law that prohibits horses and works actively with the horse industry to protect against abuse, ensuring that only sound and healthy horses participate in shows, sales, exhibitions and auctions. Name
As part of its effort to make its actions transparent and accessible to the public, APHIS is highlighting enforcement actions taken in response to violations of the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) and Horse Protection Act (HPA).
Copies of documents related to these actions, as well as copies of official warnings, are available
in the APHIS FOIA Reading Room .
During the month of January, a number of people entered into preâlitigation settlement agreements (also known as stipulations) in connection with alleged violations of the AWA or HPA
The HPA is the federal law that prohibits horses subjected to a practice called soring from participating in shows, sales, exhibitions and auctions. Soring is a cruel and abusive practice used to accentuate a horse’s gait. APHIS works actively with the horse industry to protect against such abuse, ensuring that only sound and healthy horses participate in shows, sales, exhibitions and auctions.
APHIS’ ultimate goal is to end the inhumane practice of soring completely. The HPA authorizes APHIS to issue civil penalties and to disqualify violators from participating in horse shows, exhibitions and sales. Both the AWA and HPA contain criminal penalties as well.