We secured the most important reforms ever against animal testing, while ending legal animal fighting and commercial cub-petting throughout U.S. The year 2022 turned out to be a remarkable one for the Center for a Humane Economy, Animal Wellness Action, and the Animal Wellness Foundation. We secured many tangible gains. We put a punctuation mark … Read more
Working with the Jockey Club, Animal Wellness Action helped secure statutory repair to the 2020 Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act, after a federal appellate court questioned one key provision WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Animal Wellness Action applauded lawmakers in Congress for approving provisions in the year-end federal spending bill to benefit horses in Thoroughbred racing, in … Read more
USDA is used funding increases in 2022 to find violators of the Horse Protection Act of 1970, including recent Tunica, Miss., year-end finale WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Animal Wellness Action applauded the inclusion of more than $4 million in federal funding to enforce the Horse Protection Act (HPA) of 1970 for FY2023 in the year-end spending bill released … Read more
Animal Wellness Action helped secure millions more in funding for enforcement, and USDA is using the money to find violators of the Horse Protection Act of 1970, including at Tunica, Miss., finale WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Animal Wellness Action released a letter from USDA Animal Plant and Health Inspection Services (APHIS) Administrator Kevin Shea revealing a third of … Read more
Mobile, Ala. – This week, the University of South Alabama (USA) student organization Animal Rights Alliance received guest speaker and Mobile native Marty Irby at a special event, where Irby spoke about animal protection issues and lobbying for animals in our nation’s capital. Irby is the executive director at Animal Wellness Action and a senior … Read more
Horseman and animal protection advocate honored by the queen submitted more than 50 pages of supporting documents on issue of horse ‘soring’ that Congress addressed today in a full Committee markup that comes on the heels of the queen’s passing Washington, D.C. – Today, the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce passed the Prevent All … Read more
Her Majesty worked to protect horses and spread the principles of Monty Roberts around the world.
Murfreesboro, Tenn. – Today, Animal Wellness Action, the Animal Wellness Foundation, and the Center for a Humane Economy applauded the Walking Horse Owners Association (WHOA) and its International Grand Championship show on a successful all-flat shod event that saw a record-breaking number of entries and prize money in the new “maiden class” featuring three-year-old walking horses that … Read more
Move Follows Animal Wellness Action’s Submission of More than 330 Pages of Written Testimony and Collateral Material on PAST and SAFE Acts Last Month WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Animal Wellness Action and its affiliates applauded the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce’s Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce, led by Chairwoman Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., … Read more
Move Follows Animal Wellness Action’s Submission of More than 330 Pages of Written Testimony and Collateral Material on PAST and SAFE Acts Last Month WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce has announced a Subcommittee markup on the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act, H.R. 5441, and the Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) … Read more
Legislation Would Also Renew Ban on Horse Slaughter in U.S. WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Animal Wellness Action (AWA), the Washington-based non-profit political advocacy group that worked diligently to pass the U.S. Senator Joseph D. Tydings Memorial Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act through the U.S. House in 2019, applauded U.S. House Appropriations leaders for their inclusion of … Read more
Animal Wellness Leaders Submit More than 330 Pages of Testimony and Supplements in Support of Legislation to End Horse Slaughter and Stamp Out Intentional Injuring of Tennessee Walking Horses in Competition Washington, D.C. – Today, the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce dove into debates about the treatment of horses in the United States. … Read more
Washington, D.C. – Last night, the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce – which just recently included the FDA Modernization Act as a rider to a larger FDA reform bill to address needless animal testing – announced it is also going to dive into debates about the treatment of horses in the United States. … Read more
New Building Features Tennessee Walking Horse Performing Unnatural, High-Stepping Gait Induced by Torturing and Soring Horses NASHVILLE, TENNESSSEE – Today, Animal Wellness Action, the Animal Wellness Foundation, and the Center for a Humane Economy, weighed in on the State of Tennessee’s New Archives Building that features a giant engraving of a ‘big lick’ Tennessee Walking … Read more
SHELBYVILLE, TENNESSEE – Following a report by BillyGoBoy.com, that convicted Tennessee Walking Horse abuser Jackie McConnell attended the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration on Friday night, Animal Wellness Action (AWA) executive director Marty Irby released the following statement: “Allowing Jackie McConnell to return to the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration is a disgrace that has given both Celebration … Read more
Why Haven’t We Ended Soring at the Tennessee Walking Horse World Grand Championship? It’s showtime again in Shelbyville, a phrase you’ll likely hear announcer Mark Farrar shout at the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration (Celebration) that’s set to crown its 83rd World Grand Champion on Saturday night. The 2021 World Grand Championship will likely be … Read more
Press Release Series Highlights Abusive Practice of Soring During Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration Occurring this Week in Shelbyville FREEPORT, FL – Today, Alaqua Animal Refuge announced the launch of the Animal Passion video podcast series. Hosted by Alaqua Founder Laurie Hood, Animal Passion spotlights the work of advocates from all around the globe—the “difference … Read more
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Sens. Mike Crapo, R-Ida., and Mark Warner, D-Va., reintroduced the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act designed to end the horrific practice of soring Tennessee Walking, Racking, and Spotted Saddle Horses. Soring is the intentional infliction of pain to horses’ front limbs and feet by means of applying caustic chemicals … Read more
In March 1984, only four years old, I made my first public show-ring appearance aboard Carbon Princess at the annual Walking Horse Trainers’ Show, the kickoff to each show season, that begins tomorrow night at Calsonic Arena in Shelbyville, Tennessee. She was 18 hands tall and had the heart of a champion. Most of all, she … Read more
Last week I shared the story of the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act’s failure in 2014, and ultimate passage of the renamed U.S. Senator Joseph D. Tydings Memorial PAST Act in 2019, H.R. 693. And while I briefly touched on the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture’s failed anti-soring regulations, you may have wondered what occurred … Read more
“Congressman William Whitehurst of Virginia has introduced a bill into the House which would stop such torture,” wrote LIFE magazine in October of 1969. “Washington’s most determined friend of the walker, however, may be Maryland’s Joseph D. Tydings, equestrian and senator who has introduced a similar bill in the senate.” The legislation referenced was the … Read more
Decision Sticks with Trend of Perpetuating Tennessee Walking Horse Abuse Washington, D.C. — Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia remanded a case back to the United States Department of Agriculture for a new hearing before agency Administrative Law Judges in the case of Joe Fleming Stables v. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture. … Read more
Tennessee Walking Horses need your help to end “soring,” and the artificial high-step known as the “big lick.” A New York Times headline on September 4, 2006, read “Horse Show Ends in Uproar Over U.S.D.A Inspections” reporting on the failure of the judges at the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration to crown a World Grand Champion in … Read more
Group previously negotiated a “deal” enabling round-ups of up to 30,000 wild horses and burros a year from our public lands Malicious, intentional cruelty should be a felony offense. That was a long-held rallying cry for a wide range of animal protection organizations, including the Humane Society of the United (HSUS), where my former colleagues … Read more
On December 9, 1970, President Richard M. Nixon signed into law the Horse Protection Act (HPA), the first federal law aimed at shielding horses from a distinct form of cruelty. Just prior to the HPA’s enactment, LIFE Magazine, in “Agony of the Walking Horse” chronicled abuses in the subculture of a show horse industry. … Read more
Some weeks ago, we interviewed University of Tennessee history professor Ernest Freeberg on the Animal Wellness Podcast as part of the launch of his book, “A Traitor to His Species,” a biography of the late ASPCA founder Henry Bergh. Freeberg recounted Bergh’s focus on helping all animals, but conveyed Bergh’s dedicated focus in fighting the … Read more
Helping horses by finding common ground with our adversaries Gen’s Ice Glimmer was about to go on a one-way trip to Mexico. Not to white-sand beaches. No, he was off to a make-shift horse slaughterhouse with blood-stained floors. There, the Tennessee Walking Horse would be hit between the eyes with a bolt gun, stabbed, butchered, … Read more
Press Release Nashville, Tennessee — Today Animal Wellness Action (AWA), the Animal Wellness Foundation (AWF), the Center for a Humane Economy, Horses for Life Foundation, American Horse Protection Society, and key stakeholders in the Tennessee Walking Horse industry announced a historic effort that seeks to end soring, protect the Tennessee Walking Horse and the breed, … Read more
Today’s edition of the Animal Wellness Podcast focuses on the seemingly intractable problem of “soring” of Tennessee Walking, Racking, and Spotted Saddle Horses — a kind of torture that involves injuring the pasterns or the bottom of the foot to induce an exaggerated high-stepping gait. Abusive trainers apply caustic chemicals such as mustard oil, croton … Read more
A compromise we’ve secured with industry offers a pathway to end the torture and torment of Tennessee Walking horses More than eight years ago, well into my nearly 14-year tenure as CEO of The Humane Society of the United States, I authorized an investigation into the training practices of Jackie McConnell, one of the most … Read more
For the first time, The Kentucky Derby and the Tennessee Walking Horse World Grand Championship will be held on the same evening – one an event known to all, the other a regional event in the more obscure world of showing Tennessee Walking horses. While the soring of Walking Horses has become a high-profile issue … Read more
“There once was a horse; a black stallion named Carbon Copy. Carbon Copy was a perfect model of the Tennessee Walking Horse. He knew voice commands and would respond to a whistle — so people say he could take himself around a ring to show off without anyone on his back. Carbon Copy was the … Read more
Press Release The animals were all placed for adoption by the Bureau of Land Management’s adoption programs, which put federally protected equines at risk of slaughter WINDSOR, UNITED KINGDOM — This month, Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth, II recognized lifelong horseman and Animal Wellness Action executive director Marty Irby “for his extraordinary efforts to reduce violence … Read more
While the nation is grappling with the COVID-19 crisis and seeing major protests in response to the killing of George Floyd, animal protection advocates continue to grapple with the various crises and abuses that those we work to protect face each day, including the ongoing mistreatment of Tennessee Walking Horses. I’ve been working for the … Read more
Nearly a decade ago, I made a new friend named Priscilla, our paths having merged in an improbable circumstance. From within the Tennessee Walking Horse industry, I had been working for years to curb the practice of soring — intentionally inflicting pain to horses’ front feet to create an artificial high-step known as the “Big … Read more
On Saturday, the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration in Shelbyville crowned its “Big Lick” World Grand Champions — Rodney Dick and “I’m Mayhem.” Although he’s been a serial violator of the Horse Protection Act (HPA) for decades, Dick was allowed to compete on the main stage for a shrinking and increasingly uninteresting event. It turns … Read more
Animal Wellness Action has been leading the charge to end the scourge of soring since we opened our doors last year, and prior to that, our leadership team worked together in many capacities over the past decade to eradicate soring from the equine world — it’s an issue that continues to command my attention, and … Read more
Council Passes Resolution 1868 Urging Senators Lamar Alexander and Marsha Blackburn to Cosponsor and #PassthePASTAct The PAST Act, led by U.S. Reps. Kurt Schrader (D-OR) and Ted Yoho (R-FL), cochairs of the Congressional Veterinary Medicine Caucus, was cosponsored by 308 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives, including Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Memphis), and its Senate … Read more
House passage of anti-soring bill a personal and movement milestoneThe House voted 333 to 96 today – a landslide vote – in favor of strengthening the federal law against horse soring. It’s a joyous moment for me and all animal advocates, horse lovers, and other people of conscience. Almost exactly seven years ago, I was … Read more
Measure to Stop Animal Cruelty Builds on Law Led by the Late U.S. Senator Joseph D. Tydings (D-MD) WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the U.S. Senator Joseph D. Tydings Memorial Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act by a vote of 333 to 96. The measure seeks to strengthen the Horse … Read more
In 1955, my grandfather, veterinarian Dr. Leonidas Euclid Irby, took a Tennessee Walking Horse named Sunset Sue E. in a trade for a bill owed to him for doctoring a friend’s horses. Had it not been for that particular event I doubt that I’d have ever been born because my father, a Tennessee Walking Horse … Read more
Congress slow to act on free-standing bills, but rapid-fire action on animal issues tied to annual spending measures In recent weeks, we’ve seen some significant movement on animal protection issues in the Congress. Overall, there are dozens of bills introduced to drive reform on a broad range of wildlife, anti-cruelty, animal testing, companion animal, and … Read more
H.R. 693, the Prevent All Soring Tactics Act, one of few to attract 290 House cosponsors and to come to floor under “Problem Solvers Caucus” rule Washington, D.C. — Today, the U.S. Senator Joseph D. Tydings Memorial Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act, H.R. 693, secured its 290th cosponsor, triggering a new House Rule to move the … Read more
Bill to Stop This Abuse, Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act, H.R. 693, Has Secured a Majority of House Lawmakers as Cosponsors Washington, D.C. — Footage released to Animal Wellness Action (Action) from a horse owner in Alabama shows despicable and even gruesome mistreatment of horses who are the victims of “soring” — the practice … Read more
Note: Today, U.S. Senators Mike Crapo (R-ID) and Mark Warner (D-VA) reintroduced the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act with five additional Republicans and five additional Democrats as original cosponsors. The measure, if enacted and enforced, would bring an end to routine abuses that have occurred over six decades — a curse for the sport … Read more
Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Mike Crapo (R-ID) and Mark Warner (D-VA) re-introduced the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act, which would amend the Horse Protection Act (HPA) of 1970 and finally end the practice of soring Tennessee Walking, Racking, and Spotted Saddle Horses that runs rampant throughout the Southeastern U.S. They were joined … Read more
One Consent Decree Imposes a Three-Year Suspension on a Serial Violator of Federal Laws Against “Horse Soring” But Some Suspensions Doesn’t Take Effect until 2022 Washington, D.C. — The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) continues to coddle and tolerate serious violations of the Horse Protection Act (HPA), meting out token and virtually meaningless penalties … Read more
Subtle and straightforward efforts to thwart protections for wolves, Walking horses, and roostersThere has been unmistakable progress in the field of animal protection, especially in recent years. We’ve outlawed cockfighting and dogfighting and made it a felony at the federal level too. The veal industry no longer immobilizes male calves as a standard husbandry practice. … Read more
Last month, Priscilla Presley — wife of the late, great Elvis Presley, the “king of rock ‘n roll” — joined our team at Animal Wellness Action on Capitol Hill to voice her support for passage of the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act, a measure that’s been dangling in the wind in Congress for six years. … Read more
Will advance key public policy initiatives to help animals Washington, D.C. — Today veterinarian U.S. Reps. Kurt Schrader (D-OR) and Ted Yoho (R-FL) were joined by Reps. Steve Cohen (D-TN) Ron Estes (R-KS), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), and Chris Collins (R-NY) in introducing the Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act, H.R. 693. The bill was renamed … Read more