The Performance Show Horse Association (PSHA), a new organization formed to consolidate and uniformly ensure compliance with the Horse Protection Act, announced today the hiring of Kathleen Spears as its Executive Director.
 
Spears has more than 30 years of experience working in the equine industry in several different capacities including organizational development, strategic planning, event management and financial accounting.  Most recently, she served as a consultant to the JEM 2018 World Equestrian Games and the Chief Financial Officer for World Games 2010 Foundation.
 
“Kathleen’s experience and commitment to the industry but most importantly the horse, will be a tremendous asset to PSHA as we consolidate the industry to protect the Tennessee walking horse,” said Terry Dotson, PSHA Chair.
 
Performance Show Horse Association (PSHA) was created to consolidate industry enforcement of the HPA in a fair and consistent manner to protect the wellbeing of walking horses, while maintaining the integrity of the sport.  The vast majority of owners and trainers love walking horses and put their wellbeing above all else.  For far too long, the industry has not followed through on its talk of reform with real action.  We understand that if we don’t rid the industry of its few soring trainers, there will be no industry in the near future.  Already we have made major strides to reform the system, including creating the most aggressive inspection system in the business and instituting serious punishments for those who break the rules.  And we will not be satisfied until the entire industry is fully compliant with all federal regulations and truly consistent with our love for horses.