On January 24, 2025, APHIS temporarily postponed our final rule to amend the HPA regulations for 60 days from February 1 to April 2, 2025
Volunteer leading Tennessee Walking horse that has been sored from barn.
The HPA is a Federal law that prohibits sored horses from participating in shows, exhibitions, sales or auctions and also prohibits the transportation of sored horses to or from any events.
© 2020 by Kathy Milani/The HSUS New window.
The Horse Protection Act (HPA) is a Federal law that prohibits sored horses from participating in shows, exhibitions, sales or auctions. It also prohibits the transportation of sored horses to or from any of these events.
Soring is a cruel and inhumane practice used to accentuate a horse’s gait. Soring can be accomplished through the use of certain substances, devices, and/or practices that when applied to a horse’s limb can cause physical pain, distress, inflammation, or lameness when walking, trotting, or otherwise moving.
A horse that has been sored will pick up its feet higher and faster, creating a highly animated gait that is desired in specific breed classes, such as those of Tennessee Walking Horses and racking horses.
APHIS published the final rule (89 FR 39194-39251) amending the horse protection regulations to provide, among other provisions, that our agency will screen, train, and authorize qualified persons for appointment by the management of any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction to detect and diagnose soring at such events for the purposes of enforcing the HPA.
With the exception of § 11.19, which went into effect on June 7, 2024, and authorized the training of horse protection inspectors, the remainder of the rule was scheduled to go into effect on February 1, 2025.
APHIS will issue guidance to stakeholders for the upcoming horse show season in light of the postponement of the new rule.
The HPA is a Federal law that prohibits sored horses from participating in shows, exhibitions, sales or auctions. The HPA also prohibits the transportation of sored horses to or from any of these events.
Press release by USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE