The following press statement was issued by Mike Inman, incoming CEO of the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration, after learning that Barney Davis was in attendance at the Celebration last night; the TWHNC banned him from attending the event for eternity.

"What Barney Davis did to his horses was horrific.  He should be nowhere near a walking horse ever again.  Having him in attendance sends the message that this show, and this industry, will tolerate soring and nothing could be farther from the truth.  We have implemented aggressive reforms to rid the system of soring trainers and we won’t stop until all are gone from the business for good."

At a SHOW Horse Industry Organization (HIO) affiliated horse show in July 2010 where the USDA was not present, SHOW HIO discovered Barney Davis had cruel, inhumane pressuring device in his horse’s foot, violating the HPA.  SHOW HIO immediately issued Davis a lifetime suspension and contacted the USDA who then turned the case over to the Department of Justice.  In 2011, Davis pled guilty to conspiring to violate the HPA and falsify entry forms.  He was sentenced to serve 12 months and one day in prison, pay a $4,000 fine, and ordered to write an article describing soring methods and their effects on horses.  If it had not been for the actions of SHOW HIO, Davis’ actions would have gone unpunished.

SHOW HIO, who has the strictest inspection process in the business, is inspecting every horse at the 74th annual Celebration.