Tennessee Walking Horses, What Is Soring?

Horses that are shown for cash prizes, trophies and ribbons are "trained" in various ways. Some are subjected to one form of abuse or other in the name of such "training" and for the glory and monetary gain in their value.

The Gaited Horse breeds are victims of Chemical and/or Mechanical "Soring".

Some of the Chemicals of choice by the Sorers include Mustard Oil, fuel oil and other petroleum products, Collodian and Salicylic acid. These chemicals cause terrible burning pain, death, occasionally, and inevitable scarring.

When the USDA/APHIS recognized this, they created the NO SCAR rule which in turn drove the Sorers to the use of Salicylic Acid which is applied liberally to the scarred areas and literally "burns off" the scarred skin while the horses lie in excruciating pain without the benefit of anesthetic.

If the horse survives, this "new" skin is scar free but thickened and sparsely haired.

Many horses, after this "treatment" have open lesions and/or "scurfing" on their pasterns but are "passed" as "clean" by the Sored-Horse Inspection Organizations when the USDA/APHIS is not present at their shows. The USDA/APHIS can afford to attend only 10% of the Horse Shows.

Mechanical Soring can be just as hideous and just as painful for the horses. Stacks (up to 5" high and sometimes filled with wet sand for weight) and chains are affixed to the front hooves (mostly after the horse has been Chemically sored) causing the horse to snatch his painful front hooves up off the ground and throw his weight onto the back of the spine, hips and rear legs causing the "knee up the nose, butt dragging" image of the Big Lick Show Horse.

Pressure Shoeing causes extreme pain and some of the Sored-Horse Trainers stop short of this practice, though many do not.

Road Foundering is a common practice before showing causing exactly the amount of pain you would expect with "acute founder".

Heavy Plantation Shoes ("manhole covers" up to 60 oz. in weight) accompanied by a Chemical "touch-up" and chains on already painful areas, also produce the sought after but bastardized "gait".

Horses that are "chemically sored" not only suffer instant pain but can also be subject to Nervous System Disorders, sterility, genetic mutations, spontaneous abortions, intestinal tumors etc. and most die from Colic.

Mechanical Soring, aside from the instantly produced pain, causes irreparable damage in young horses to the tendons, knees, cerebral spine, hips, tendons and hocks of the rear legs. Show horses are subjected to this torture from as young as 14 mos. of age. The Show Careers of these unfortunate horses are short lived and these horses have the highest mortality rates and the lowest insurable ages-up to 12 years!