Anti Horse-Soring Bill Receives Bipartisan Support

Republicans and Democrats are banding together to eliminate soring from Tennessee walking horse competitions. Soring is a practice in which caustic chemicals are administered to a horse’s hooves to inflict pain and make the animal walk with a high gait to receive more competition points. The Federal Prevent All Soring Tactics Act has already received sponsorship by 114 Republicans and 186 Democrats in the House of Representatives, and according to the Humane Society of the United States, a similar Senate bill has 57 cosponsors on both sides of the aisle. This is not the first animal-welfare issue that has received bipartisan support—earlier this year, a plethora of Democrat and Republican congress members called on the United States Department of Agriculture to update its regulations on the treatment and living conditions of confined orca whales.