Congress Members Ask for Anti-Soring Rule Approval

Passed before Trump’s administration took office, a clerical error led to the rule being put on hold, pending review.
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More than 150 Congress members have signed a letter asking the Trump administration to expedite its final approval of a new USDA rule banning the use of pads, chains, and other action devices sometimes used in the training of Tennessee Walking Horses.

The new rule would boost the way the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service enforces the Horse Protection Act (HPA), which forbids soring.

Approved on Jan. 13, just before the Trump administration took office, the rule prohibits the use of action devices, including chains weighing more than 6 ounces, on Tennessee Walking Horses and Racking Horses at horse shows, exhibitions, sales, and auctions. The final rule also forbids the use of boots other than soft rubber or leather bell boots and quarter boots used as protective devices and associated lubricants. It also prohibits the use of “pads and wedges on Tennessee Walking Horses and Racking Horses at horse shows, exhibitions, sales, and auctions, except for therapeutic pads and wedges.”

The ban was slated to take effect in February, but the federal Department of Engraving and Printing failed to publish it before former President Barack Obama left office. As a result, the final rule was among several regulations put on hold pending review by the Trump administration

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Written by:

Pat Raia is a veteran journalist who enjoys covering equine welfare, industry, and news. In her spare time, she enjoys riding her Tennessee Walking Horse, Sonny.

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