Celebration Arena in Shelbyville
The Tennessee Walking Show Horse Celebration issued the ban Saturday after discovering that 38-year-old Barney Davis of Lewisburg was in attendance at a gathering in Shelbyville. Earlier this year Davis received a one year prison term and was fined $4,000. At his sentencing he described mechanical devices and chemical irritants used to sore horses to force them to show an exaggerated gait in the show ring.
The ban comes as the Tennessee Walking Show Horse Organization called on the multiple groups to join industry leaders at a “Horse Protection Summit” in Shelbyville before the end of the year.
“Soring” is an illegal practice where items like bolts are driven into horse’s hoofs, foreign objects are attached to the legs of the animals, or chemicals are used to produce pain and sensitivity to alter the gait of a horse. The altered gait is valued at horse competitions.
