Loss of support seen for Tennessee walking horse shows

By The Tennessean May 30, 2013 1 min read

Horses compete for the 2012 Tennessee Walking Horse World Grand Championship. / John Partipilo / File / The Tennessean

The president of a leading Tennessee walking horse organization said this week the industry has lost public support over allegations of soring and must “rid ourselves of this black cloud.”

“I believe our modern-day padded show horses are cleaner than they’ve ever been,” Tracy Boyd, president of the Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders’ and Exhibitors’ Association, said this week in a statement on the group’s website.

“The problem is that nobody outside our industry believes it. And when you’ve lost the public, you have lost it all … and we have clearly lost the public.”