The Walking Horse Trainers' Association's National Trainers Show was held March 17-19, 2016 at the Calsonic Arena in Shelbyville, Tenn.  The show was affiliated with the SHOW HIO and four USDA VMOs were in attendance each night.  New APHIS Deputy Administrator, Bernadette Juarez, was in attendance on Thursday and Friday night.

For the show, 369 entries were presented for pre-show inspection in front of the SHOW Designated Qualified Persons.  Of those entries, SHOW took information on 19 horses that as a result show management disqualified and did not allow to show per the Horse Protection Act.  SHOW's inspections produced a 95% compliance rate. Those 19 horses resulted in 22 total violations, four bilateral sensitivity, seven unilateral sensitivity, four scar rules, two foreign substance, two shoeing, one low chain and two unacceptable.  

In addition to the 19 horses that SHOW took information on, the USDA disqualified an additional 24 horses.  The USDA took information on 14 of the 19 horses that SHOW also took information.  By night, the USDA took information on 12 horses Thursday night, 19 horses Friday night and seven horses Saturday night.  The USDA took information on six horses passed by SHOW Thursday night, 12 passed by SHOW Friday night and six passed by SHOW Saturday night.

For more information on show management's decision to remove the DQPs from inspection for the last several classes of the horse show click here.