The U.S. Department of Agriculture has stepped up to prove that it takes abuse of Tennessee Walking Horses seriously. That’s good news, but what is more important is whether the show-horse industry has learned that it must change for the better.

On June 5, the USDA announced a new rule requiring minimum penalties for violations of the Horse Protection Act. Though the act was put in place 40 years ago, it has not been consistently enforced, and the maiming and beating of these animals has continued to the present.

The new rule means that any of the outside organizations that often conduct inspections of horses before shows must impose the same level of federal penalty at every show. Any horse found to be sored will automatically be disqualified from competition, and those responsible will be suspended from shows and other events.

The USDA had little choice other than to take a tougher line after the recent release of an undercover video made by the Humane Society of the United States. That video made it possible for millions of people worldwide to see the depraved way that some horses are treated, to condition them into a high-kicking gait that will bring prize money and glory to the horses’ owners and trainers.

In the past, the industry has reacted publicly to cases of soring, issuing handfuls of suspensions and forming the inspection organization SHOW. But the soring cases always came back; if, indeed, they ever ceased.
So how might it be different this time? As shocking as the video is, the public and inspectors might think the new rule means people who care about horses can rest easy.

But even though the show-horse industry cannot truly self-regulate, it certainly can reform itself from within.
Large industries tend to resist fundamental change; however, it does occur. Automakers from Audi to Toyota have removed unsafe vehicles from the road, even at great cost to their companies. The tobacco industry, though it continues to make unsafe products, can no longer market to children and is highly taxed to discourage volume sales.

Some of these industries were dragged into better citizenship. Some food manufacturers and distributors have been more proactive, improving labeling and the nutritional content of their products after health risks were identified.

Of course, reforms from within often occur to head off civil lawsuits. It needn’t get that far for the Walking Horse industry.

It’s a given that the Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders’ and Exhibitors’ Association should enforce zero tolerance of abuse among its members. But why not also fund a program of education and awareness on humane treatment of animals in coordination with schools, 4-H Clubs and farm associations? Make soring an atrocity that only happened in the past.

Most important of all, stop the fear — fear by individuals and businesses whose livelihoods depend on horse shows — that bringing abuse to light will only hurt them economically. The fans who truly care about horses will keep coming to the shows even without the “big lick,” and probably will gain new legions of fans confident that the horses are being treated humanely.

Editorial from the Nashville Tennessean