USEF Bans Action Devices for Gaited Horses

The USEF executive committee approved a rule banning soring during its Dec. 17, 2012, meeting.
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The application of chains, pads, and other so-called action devices sometimes used on Tennessee Walking Horses and other gaited horses to produce an exaggerated, so-called “big lick” gait have been banned at competitions licensed by the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) under a rule approved by that organization’s executive committee last month.

Some trainers of Tennessee Walking Horses and other gaited horses attach chains, weighted shoes, or pads to horses’ lower legs and feet to achieve an exaggerated, high-stepping gait. Some equine welfare advocates say use of the devices leads to the soring, which is the deliberate injury of horses’ feet and legs to achieve an exaggerated gait. The Horse Protection Act (HPA) forbids the practice. Last year, legislation that would amend the HPA to include a ban on the so-called “action devices” was introduced into the House of Representatives. A similar bill is expected to be introduced during the current Congressional session.

During its Dec. 17, 2012, meeting, the USEF executive committee approved a rule banning soring “and/or the use of any action device on any limb of a Tennessee Walking Horse, Racking Horse, or Spotted Saddle Horse in any class at a USEF Licensed Competition.”

The rule defines an action device as “as any boot, collar, chain, roller, or other device that encircles or is placed upon the lower extremity of the leg of a horse in such a manner that it can rotate around the leg or slide up and down the leg so as to cause friction or strike the hoof, coronet band, fetlock joint, or pastern of the horse.” The use of weighted shoes, pads, and other devices also known as stacks or performance packages is also banned under the rule. The rule excludes the use of protective bell boots or heel boots

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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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