TN Walking Horse Investigation
Merlin ID: 158833
Caption
The Humane Society of the United States released undercover video footage on May 25, 2012 revealing cruel treatment of horses in the Tennessee walking horse industry. The subject of the investigation, nationally known trainer Jackie McConnell, notified the federal court in Tennessee that he intends to plead guilty to felony conspiracy to violate the Horse Protection Act.
The video, shot over several weeks in 2011 at Whitter Stables, operated by McConnell, shows individuals abusing horses by using painful chemicals on the horses’ front legs to force them to perform an artificially high-stepping gait for show competitions. This cruel practice, known as “soring,” has been illegal for more than 40 years under the federal Horse Protection Act.
The footage also shows horses being brutally whipped, kicked, shocked in the face, and violently cracked across the heads and legs with heavy wooden sticks. The investigator documented the cruel practice of “stewarding”—training a horse not to react to pain during official show inspections of their legs for soreness, by striking them in the head when they flinch during mock inspections in the training barn. The investigation also uncovered the illegal use of numbing agents for the purpose of temporarily masking a horse’s reaction to pain so it can pass official horse show inspections.
Credit
The HSUS
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