story from the Chattanoogan.com
Finally the Horses Win a Round
Barney Davis, 39, of Lewisburg, Tn., Christen Altman, 26, of Shelbyville, Tn., and Jeffery Bradford, 33, of Lewisburg, Tn., entered pleas of guilty on Tuesday, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Chattanooga to various violations of the Horse Protection Act.
Davis also pled guilty to conspiracy to commit witness tampering in this case. Sentencing has been set for Feb. 13, 2012, at 9 a.m., in United States District Court in Chattanooga.
Davis faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine; and Altman and Bradford each face a term of up to one year in prison and a $3,000 fine.
A federal grand jury in Chattanooga returned a 34-count superseding indictment on April 26, against Davis, Altman, Bradford, and Paul Blackburn, 35, of Shelbyville, Tn., charging them with violations of the federal Horse Protection Act and related financial crimes.
An amended information was filed today charging Davis with violations of the Horse Protection Act as well as conspiracy to commit witness tampering. Davis waived presentation to the grand jury and pled guilty to the charges contained in the information.
According to the factual basis presented during the rearraignment, Davis, Altman, Bradford, and Blackburn, who pled guilty in October, conspired to violate the federal Horse Protection Act by “soring”horses and falsifying entry forms and other related paperwork.
“Soring” is a unlawful practice where items like bolts are screwed against the soles of horse’s hoofs or chemicals are applied to the pastern and hoof areas to produce pain and sensitivity to alter the gait of a horse. The altered gait is valued at horse competitions.
This indictment was the result of an ongoing investigation by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General. The USDA-OIG has the authority to investigate criminal violations of the Horse Protection Act including allegations related to soring and false entries or statements. The OIG investigation of this case was initiated in August 2010.
Officials said, “The gaited horse industry is important to the economy and culture of Tennessee. It is extremely important to maintain the integrity of the industry and ensure that those who participate in the industry are following the law. There have been too many people who have acted with impunity in this arena for too long by violating the Horse Protection Act and other federal laws. We hope this prosecution and others like it will deter trainers and owners who are thinking about cheating and committing fraud in order to reap monetary profits and achieve notoriety. Hopefully, the possibility of being federally prosecuted, sustaining criminal convictions – felonies and misdemeanors, and the prospect of jail time will serve to make people think twice before violating the law.
“The other aspect of these types of prosecutions is less tangible but just as real. As human beings, we have been given dominion over the earth and its creatures, and we must exercise that privilege by being good stewards of this gift. Maiming and mutilating horses for sport and profit betrays that charge of stewardship. We in the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the general public want these competitions to be fair, free of cheating and fraud, and safe for the horses so everyone can enjoy the natural beauty and grace of animals such as Tennessee Walking Horses, Spotted Saddle horses, and other gaited horses.”
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven Neff and Kent Anderson represented the United States.
Categories: Horse Health, Horse News
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
Finally!!!!!!!!!It is at least a start. Sick of EGOS being the cause of Pain and suffering of our animal companions.We are everyhere and we are watching you and filming you and you will be turned inThis torture will not be tolerated. Real horsemmen and do not abuse their equine companions.
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Thank you so very much for putting this up R.T.
Soring has become more common in other soft gaited horse breeds as well. There is a facet of exhibitors that have done this in other breeds not mentioned above including: Mountain Horse, Racking Horse, American Saddlebred and even in non soft gaited breeds that are shown “Park” style. I interviewed a former TWH judge in Illinois and he told me he’d remembered when he’d go to judge a show, that when USDA would show up, the people soring their poor animals would clear out. But some of these people are so slick, even USDA’s heat and chemical sensors don’t detect the soring and the horse is let through to be exhibited. When DQP’s (Designated Qualified Persons), who are appointed to stop these activities at shows are present, the perpetrators sometimes get by them too. Down at Sedalia State Fair in Missouri, the horses are shown with scars on their pasterns from the soring and it is said one can smell the caustic, burning sulphury type chemicals that have caused so much pain for the horses to endure even at the show. Some of these people with no compassion or morals have their own barn “farrier” (or one that caters to this kind of clientele)…take nails and drive them through the heavy pads to the inside of the white line. The horses often lay in their stalls because it is too painful to stand, and they move in that contorted manner in the “show arena” due to sheer pain in their feet and legs. Being pulled way up behind the bridle causes their back to hollow and many back, hip and hock problems result in horses being ridden in this manner. Just as in the racing industry, some are disposed of through slaughter when they are no longer sound or have been mentally ruined by the cruelty of humans. Here is a website that has more information on this heinous act of inflicting pain, discomfort or weighted pads and shoes to alter a horse’s gait: http://www.fosh.info/whatissoring.htm
Kim Sheppard
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Finally someone in Washington “GETS IT!” Wish we could sore the guys who did this to the horses…
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The link I put up above didn’t work. Please try this one. It has all sorts of tabs including one people’s names who have been caught, suspended or blacklisted from showing: http://www.fosh.info/
Kim
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I hope the Judge gives them the max sentence and they serve every day allowed.
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This question is for hawkovermustang.
Do you have any proof of soring in American Saddlebreds?
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Finally !!!!!!! Awareness ans the Mentality that all caretakers will not let these Criminal , harass and maim these beautiful horses , for their own personal gain, I say make an example of these people throw the darn book at them !!!!!! Let them know that this is a serious crime and will not be tolerated……………… The gait that these beauties were born with is a wonder in itself, each is unique to each horse that is enough to be show quality… Their Gaits stand on their own for beauty…………. No need to maim them to improve it…………………………… It is awesome in it natural state,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
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One small step for man and a big step for Horses. I’m all for anything the helps protect all horses from the evil that is being done to them by mankind. I also have a gaited horse and she assists me in being to ride because of some handicap issues. I call her my therapy horse and am very thankful to have her.
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This went on during the Celebration, the week after Louisville. The Feds brought in a convoy of tractor trailers and hauled off more than 40 horses. We have no idea what happened to them. Some of them were boarded there during the show, did not belong to that barn, and were being hauled back and forth to the show grounds – or so the story goes. I heard all of this about fifth hand when it happened.
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Now if you can go after the Quarter horse industry for over breeding. There moto should say breed to improve then send to kill. Sorry that’s how I feel about what their practices are, equine Hitler’s of the horse world. If their face is not refined enough they get sold. If the Bones are not fine enough or lacking muscle and especially don’t look pretty enough they get sold to the kill pen. A typical breed attitude is Send them to slaughter to make room for an improved horse. I hate to break to them but its the differences that make them stronger physically and mentally. We as their care takers have an obligation to make sure from birth to death that they have the best life possible, in the event that we can no longer take care of them to find alternatives other than slaughter to re-home of if not possible humanely euthanize them as quickly as possible. The judges at these show’s should be held accountable to swaying these naive owner’s and unscrupulous trainers into unloading their horses to this end. The cruelty is just being uncovered and I hope for future horses it’s blown out of the water to prevent another horse from suffering cruel training methods that are currently employed by these mentally sick twisted people who encourage this kind of behavior. I’m glad somebody is getting the punishment they so rightly deserve because they brought it on them selves and made this industry appear negative publicly.
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Accounts of “enhancing” even the two beat diagonal based trot gait of breeds such as Saddlebreds and Hackneys have been around for awhile (even if just isolated instances or from a small sector that may be fading out with those generations passing on) where discomfort or irritation to the feet and legs was caused by anything from irritants such as hot mustard to “excessive” weights on the feet with high heels and long toes and/or chains slapping and banging on the pasterns and coronet.Those and numerous other “training” methods not necesarilly affecting the feet and legs have caused concern because they went beyond what was considered “normal”, even by people within those circles who loved their horses. My comment had to do with what is known to cause discomfort to the bone, tendons, muscling, skin, or any part of the hoof, heel, laminae or frog of the horse’s foot (regardless of the breed) to alter or enhance the gait in any manner, regardless of whether or not it is the specific coined “soring” definition for TWH’s. People try to justify it, but it is what it is and for me it helps to define what is not good stewardship of animals that are shown.
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I live in Chattanooga and I am ashamed of these three. I have been to Shelbyville and other areas in TN and have been aware of the abuse these horses have been going through for the sake of ego and greed. It has always been a problem in TN. Nails in hooves, soring what ever they can do to get the horses to step high. These organizations over breed and then only keep a select few. There should be limitations on over breeding as the throw aways end up sold to God knows who and slaughter. I wish they would get the book thrown at them. They need to know what it feels like to walk in pain. Brand them
for all to see. I hear about people like this and it makes me sick when a my mother and my daughter-in-laws mother is at home with Hospice and they are both wonderful good people. I am not bitter they will be in a better place some day but it is the day to day pain they suffer.The horse world is full of the likes of people like slaughter house Sue but there is even more good stewarts and we will always have to fight and be the voice of our horses on the ranges and in the arena.
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