NAME OF SHOW THE AMERICAN HUMANE ASSOCIATION NIP Report Form (NATIONWIDE INSPECTION PROGRAM) 1968 Washington, D. C. INterNational HORSE Show, LtD TYPE OF SHOW CARNIVAL ARRIVAL DATE RODEO Oct. 28, 1948 NEXT LOCATION MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, NY. NAME OF INSPECTING ORGANIZATION DEPARTURE DATE November 3, 1968 DATES Week of Nov. 5-1968 бос. Wash. D.C. HUMANe Soc. 1. CONDITION AND HEALTH OF ANIMALS GOOD 2. FACILITIES GOOD COMMENT 3. FACILITIES CLEAN AND SANITARY? YES 4. FOOD AND WATER GOOD NO Many Vans filthy. COMMENT See Below COMMENT COMMENT REMARKS - PLEASE DESCRIBE IRREGULARITIES – USE REVERSE SIDE IF NECESSARY: articles (1) one to (4) above. this has been given stimulating drugs (possibly a & In my opinion many of these humatis narcotic ) inclucing undue stress & dangerous to rider 896 PENNSYLVANIA STREET. DENVER 3, COLORADO. RETAIN CARBON COPY FOR YOUR FILES. Horses bregarding the tennessee Walking Horn Dobeured the following, and in my pinion que, 1. lose of an irritant (snuff, pepper, at) placed very coretly in the mouth price & exhibiting. 3. Tont feet of thee have extent showed a) - Lequation of the hoof, concealed unally inlevel by mgating untarlo Coronary Bind Crack b) Grooving the hoop too clor painful on the coronary head, which inc to the above the coronary Soves induces a Coronary BALf = Groove Steel Bamal to Help holdow shove Rey inclured by mechanical applianer or irritente . ) An X-Ray won detectable show. other aluser not a by obsuration only. WASHINGTON, D.C., September 15, 1969. Senator WARREN G. MAGNUSON, Washington, D.C. DEAR SENATOR MAGNUSON: I greatly regret that I shall be unable to attend the hearings on S. 2543 to be held September 17 before the Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources and Environment. I should appreciate it if the enclosed statement in favor of the bill could be included in the printed record of the hearings. With deep gratitude for your tremendous contribution to the advancement of humane legislation, I am, Sincerely yours, MADELEINE BEMELMANS, President, Society for Animal Protective Legislation. STATEMENT OF MADELEINE BEMELMANS The Society for Animal Protective Legislation strongly recommends the passage of legislation to prevent the "soring" of Tennessee Walking Horses. It seems incredible that this shameful practice has been allowed to continue for so long. In its issue of March 25, 1960, The Chronicle (published in Middleburg, Virginia) printed a letter from Buford Ellington, Governor of Tennessee to J. Glenn Turner, President of the Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders Association. As a member of the Association and in his official capacity as Governor of the State, Mr. Ellington expressed concern with the tremendous amount of adverse publicity the Association had received. He pointed out that such publicity not only affected the guilty but would greatly affect the acceptance of the Tennessee Walking Horse by the general public. He insisted that, unless immediate steps were taken to correct conditions, legislation would be passed to do so. It was his belief that the Association would prefer to deal with its own problems rather than turn them over, through the Legislature, to other groups. Mr. Turner read the Governor's letter at a dinner given by the Association and further commented on how thoroughly the American public had been aroused. He quoted the opinion of a man from Georgia that, if something were not done to stop the abuses, the Tennessee Walking Horse would do for Tennessee what the Chain gang had done for Georgia. Mr. Turner, himself, expressed the view that the Association must either stand behind the principle of soring horses or stand unalterably opposed to it. Given this choice and due to the impact of unfavorable publicity, drastic rule changes were made to govern the showing and judging of the Tennessee Walking Horses. In spite of the position taken by the Breeders' Association, the cruelty continues. Horse Show, the official publication of the American Horse Shows Association, in its August number, lists four instances of recent violations of rules by exhibitors of Tennessee Walking Horses. For example, at a hearing held on June 21, 1969, three men were found guilty of attempting to show a horse with raw and bleeding sores around the coronet, pastern, and legs. By way of censure, the Hearing Committee of the American Horse Shows Association voted these gentlemen not in good standing and barred them and any horses owned by them from taking any part in Registered Shows from July 1, 1969 to October 1, 1969. In spite of the position taken by the Breeders' Association, of the American Horse Shows Association, in its August number, lists four instances of recent violations of rules by exhibitors of Tennessee Walking Horses. For example, at a hearing held on June 21, 1969, three men were found guilty of attempting to show a horse with raw and bleeding sores around the coronet, pastern, and legs. By way of censure, the Hearing Committee of the American Horse Shows Association voted these gentlemen not in good standing and barred them and any horses owned by them from taking any part in Registered Shows from July 1, 1969 to October 1, 1969. The suffering inflicted on animals is generally justified or accepted on the grounds that their sacrifice is necessary for the benefit of mankind. The agony inflicted on the Tennessee Walking Horse is without any justification whatsoever. The Society for Animal Protective Legislation is deeply grateful to Senator Tydings and to the cosponsors of S. 2543. We respectfully urge the members of this Committee to hasten its passage. Hon. WARREN G. MAGNUSON, Washington, D.C. OKLAHOMA ANIMAL PROTECTIVE LEAGUE, INC., DEAR SENATOR: There's no sense to allowing so-called civilized people who, for profit or plain playboy show off, subject horses' feet to torture to get them to be "Tennessee Walking Horses" in shows. We hope you will help put a stop to this by approving Senator Tyding's bill (S. 2543). Really, there should be no opposition to such a bill. Only those degenerate enough to be like the Nazis in concentration camps would advocate your not voting the bill out. Senator JoSEPH D. TYDINGS, LESLIE BROOKS, President. COLUMBIA, TENN., September 12, 1969. Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources, and the Environment, U. S. Senate, Washington, D.C. GENTLEMEN: As a lifetime breeder, trainer and owner of the beloved Tennessee walking horse, I am vitally interested in the pending legislation to prohibit the cruel, unnecessary and, to me and many other horse lovers, abhorrent practice of sorting any horse, and particularly Tennessee walking horse. The breeding and training of walking horses has been my means of livelihood for some thirty years and it has been a labor of devotion and the satisfaction of seeing an animal develop by natural abilities and the untiring and tender care given to the horse by the trainer. As a result of my efforts I have won many ribbons, including having two Reserved World Champions, and never has it been necessary to punish the animal to the extent of forcing an unnatural condition upon the horse for the sole purpose of winning. Unscrupulous and heartless trainers who completely ignore the ethics of the profession have slowly, but surely, progressed in the act of soring to the point that it has become acceptable among the younger trainers, and has resulted in many, many cases of outright fraud in the sale of an unqualified horse to an unwary purchaser by making a mediocre horse appear to be a well-trained and qualified animal. In other words, the animal has been subjected to torture and cruelty for the purpose of deluding the purchaser into an unwise transaction. Further emphasizing the widespread practice of soring, I would say that a great majority of the trainers of Tennessee Walking horses today are guilty in some degree of soring, and as a result those who have a hesitancy are almost forced to the practice in order to meet competition. Attempts at selfpolicing by the trainers and breeders associations have been entirely ineffective since any attempt on the part of anyone to stop the practice results in virtual boycott by others, both as judges and officials in horse shows. In this connection the State laws, and I speak particularly about Tennessee, although stern and uncompromising in their wordage, are not or cannot be enforced. Efforts were made at the 1969 Celebration to police and correct the practice of soring, but these efforts are necessarily inhibited by the fact that many of the judges are themselves professional trainers and as such, are subjected to pressures difficult to withstand. The only conscious and effective efforts to prohibit soring have been done by the American Horse Shows Association, but their authority is limited to those horse shows sponsored by them, and in the case of Tennessee includes only two shows. I need not repeat to this Committee the effects of soring on the defenseless horse, but need only say that it is torture and cruelty in the extreme and does permanent damage to a noble animal that has all the qualifications necessary through breeding and proper training for the enjoyment of man without this practice, it being my opinion based on many years of experience that this is a needless cruelty which falsifies the natural abilities of this distinctly American animal. In my review of the proposed bill, I have only one doubt as to its effectiveness. that is, its enforcement through the Department of Agriculture on the local level. However, as a layman I can only signifiy this doubt for the consideration of the Committee is enacting means of policing and enforcement. In all sincerity, I urge the correction of soring as a cruel, unnecessary, fraudulent and degrading practice, and respectfully submit this letter for the consideration of the Committee, and for such purpose as the Committee might deem necessary. Very truly yours, W. J. URQUHART. STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN HUMANE ASSOCIATION ON S. 2543 BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENERGY, NATURAL RESOURCES, AND THE ENVIRONMENT OF THE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, U.S. SENATE Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, the American Humane Association is a national federation of over 800 societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals and children with headquarters in Denver, Colorado. In 1967 and 1968 at its 91st and 92nd National Conventions resolutions were adopted overwhelmingly supporting the predecessor bill to S. 2543. We have examined S. 2543 to be called the "Horse Protection Act of 1969", and believe that it will carry into effect the intended purpose. The American Humane Association, therefore, supports the enactment of S. 2543 and urges a favorable report from your subcommittee. Respectfully submitted, THE AMERICAN HUMANE ASSOCIATION, Executive Director. Jo V. MORGAN, Jr., Washington Representative. STATEMENT BY THE AMERICAN VETERINARY MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, M. R. CLARKSON, D.V.M., EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, OF S. 2543 A bill to protect interstate and foreign commerce by prohibiting the movement in such commerce of horses which are "sored", and for other purposes Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, the American Veterinary Medical Association is pleased to have this opportunity to present its views on S. 2543. The bill contains a definition of the conditions under which a horse shall be considered to have been "sored"; it contains a finding by the Congress that the practice is cruel and inhumane; and it contains a declaration that it shall be unlawful for any person to move any horse that has been "sored" in commerce for the purpose of showing or exhibition, to show or exhibit such a horse that has moved in commerce for the purpose, or to conduct a show in which any such horse moved in commerce is exhibited. Penalties of not more than $500 or imprisonment for not more than 6 months or both are prescribed for those who violate any provisions of the Act, and the Secretary of Agriculture is authorized to promulgate regulations for enforcement. The "soring" of horses for show or exhibition purposes is a cruel practice. It is an unnecessary and objectionable substitute for selective breeding and competent training. The American Veterinary Medical Association unhesitatingly condemns the practice. Many groups, including responsible horsemen, have worked to eliminate the practice. Action taken by the American Horse Shows Association to prohibit the entry, not only of horses showing evidence of "soring" but also of horses foaled after January 1, 1965, and having scars in the coronet or pastern, should be effective to eliminate the practice. It would be far preferable if the practice of "soring" horses can be stopped through the enforcement of the rules of the American Horse Shows Association rather than to add another area of enforcement activities to be undertaken by the already burdened resources of the Department of Agriculture. Reasonable enforcement of the horse show rules would make it impracticable for anyone to engage in the "soring" of horses for show or exhibition purposes. This Association does not have sufficient data to determine whether Federal legislation is necessary. However, if the Congress should decide to pass this bill, there are some points requiring further attention: 35-028 0-69 9 |