The American Horse Council (AHC) has submitted comments supporting the United States Department of Agriculture’s proposed rules to allow noncompetitive entertainment horses from countries affected with contagious equine metritis to be temporarily imported into the United States under certain safeguards.                              

The AHC supports the amendment of the current import regulations to provide a solution to these problems. “We appreciate the USDA’s effort to respond to the problems with the importation and allocation of permits for non-competitive entertainment horses, and to better accommodate this sector of the industry while protecting the safeguards that are in place” stated Kerry Thompson, AHC Director of Health & Regulatory Affairs.

The AHC stated its recognition of the need for a new category within the import regulations to further accommodate the entertainment sector of the horse industry.  Many problems have arisen in the past with the importation of non-competitive entertainment horses and their continual application for permits.

Though fully supportive of the proposed rules, the AHC raised one concern in the comments.  As written, the proposed rule provides for no limit on the period of time that the imported horses can remain in the U.S.  The AHC is concerned that USDA may not be able to enforce the requirements specified for these horses over extended periods of time.  The AHC wants to make sure that USDA will be able to carry out the actions required to protect the U.S. horse industry from the introduction of disease, which is a priority of the American horse industry.

The full-text of the AHC comments can be found on the Health & Regulations section of the American Horse Council website, www.horsecouncil.org.

For more information about the American Horse Council, please visit: www.horsecouncil.org or call 202-296-4031.