America’s veterinarians are standing alongside US Department of Agriculture inspectors in their opposition to the abusive practice of soring, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA).
Chemical or mechanical irritants applied to horse's legs = soring
Strengthened regulation and more funding for horse inspections would help end the practice of horse soring.
According to the AVMA, strengthened regulation and more funding for horse inspections would help end the practice, which has been illegal for more than 40 years.
Soring is the term used to the describe techniques involving the use of chemical or mechanical irritants to cause hypersensitivity in the lower legs of horses. The irritation encourages the animal to adopt the higher gait favoured in the walking horse industry.
The AVMA said the start of the gaited horse show season had heightened its commitment, along with the Department of Agriculture and the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) to end soring.
The AVMA endorses the American Association of Equine Practitioners' position on the practice of soring, which reads as follows:
"The AAEP condemns the practice of 'soring,' as legally defined in the Horse Protection Act of 1970 (HPA), to accentuate a horse's gait for training or show purposes. The AAEP supports the efforts of APHIS in the application and enforcement of the HPA as outlined in the APHIS Horse Protection Operating Plan and strongly recommends imposing sufficient sanctions to prevent these practices. As legally defined in the HPA, 'soring' refers to:
- An irritating or blistering agent has been applied, internally or externally, by a person to any limb of a horse;
- Any burn, cut, or laceration has been inflicted by a person on any limb of a horse;
- Any tack, nail, screw, or chemical agent has been injected by a person or used by a person on any limb of a horse;
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Any other substance or device has been used by a person on any limb of a horse or a person has engaged in a practice involving a horse, and, as a result of such application, infliction, injection, use, or practice, such a horse suffers, or can reasonably be expected to suffer, physical pain or distress, inflammation, or lameness when walking, trotting, or otherwise moving, except that such term does not include such an application, infliction, injection, use, or practice in connection with the therapeutic treatment of a horse by or under the supervision of a person licensed to practice veterinary medicine in the State in which such a treatment was given."
“Prosecution of violators has met strong political opposition, challenging USDA’s efforts at enforcement and creating an environment where recidivism is the norm, the AVMA said.
“For that reason, America’s veterinarians are standing right beside USDA inspectors in urging the strengthening of the Horse Protection Act,” Carlson said.
“Everyone – inspectors, judges, trainers, riders and even spectators at these shows must take responsibility for ending soring.
“A zero-tolerance policy being promoted by these shows would set a significant tenor for the entire show season,” she added.
The AVMA has created an educational video, produced in co-operation with the AAEP and USDA, to provide an overview of the issue of soring and highlight the tell-tale signs of when a horse has been sored.
The video includes an interview with Elizabeth Graves, a licensed Tennessee Walking Horse judge and gaited-horse trainer and Dr Nat Messer, a member of animal welfare committees for both the AVMA and AAEP’.
The AVMA said it was confident that with appropriate recognition of the inhumane nature of soring; increased reporting of abuse; and stronger legislative and regulatory action, including adequate funding for inspections, the offspring of today’s sored horses won’t have to suffer tomorrow.