Celebration Arena in Shelbyville
A recent report by the ABC News program Nightline prompted Pepsi to pull its sponsorship of the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration in Shelbyville, Tennessee. The report focused on a practice known as “horse soring” where trainers use chemical or mechanical items such as kerosene and metal bolts to exaggerate the natural walking horse gait. The exaggerated gait, known as the “Big LIck” is prized in competitions. The U.S. Humane Society released video footage and held a press conference in Nashville showing undercover recordings of noted horse trainer Jackie McConnell soring a horse.
