PROPOSAL FOR LIMITED REGISTRATION FOR ARABIAN HERITAGE HORSES

BACKGROUND ISSUES TO BE ADDRESSED:

1.      Well over 1,000 Arabian bred horses a year[1] are ending up with rescue organizations, having gone through low end and/or loose auctions, sold directly to buyers who market horses to slaughter houses in Mexico or Canada, or having been seized by governmental agencies for cruelty or lack of care.   Arabian 300 Club, alone, has assisted with rescue of 4,201 Arabian bred horses, between 2016 and 2022, according to the statistics posted on its website.  Love This Horse Equine Rescue, Inc. has assisted over 500others.  These are just two among a large number of rescues that now exist in the United States.

 

2.      The number of registered Arabian and part-Arabian horses has been decreasing; as has the number of horses competing in Arabian breed shows, as the number of families owning Arabian and part-Arabian horses has continued to decline.  

 

3.      Societal norms have changed, causing increasing criticism of equestrian sports as putting money and vanity over the welfare of the equine athletes.  This social license discussion is driving a  need to give the well being of the horses an even more primary focus.  The reality is that “kill pens” are thriving, while the traditional horse industry is struggling to survive.

 

4.      The cost of litigating even a small matter, such as a probate estate or litigated lien foreclosure, can easily exceed $25,000, making litigation over a horse’s full registration papers not viable, for the vast majority of lawful owners.[2]

 

5.      The International Rescue Horse Registry is now recognized by USDF and presents a competitive registry for horses that are not allowed to be re-connected to their Arabian heritage.

OBSERVATIONS:

1.      Having the ability to compete in Arabian horse shows helps to make a horse more marketable and less likely to go into the low-end auctions or sales that feed  “the kill pen pipeline”.

 

2.      Horses that end up in the “kill pen pipeline” are at great risk of being abused, traumatized, and, potentially, slaughtered.

 

3.      Current technology and the database maintained by AHA and The Registry allow a horse that has been registered to be identified through DNA testing .

 

4.      Current rule 126 of the Purebred Arabian Horse Registry requires either the horse’s recorded owner to sign over the horse’s registration papers; or one of 4 events to have occurred to allow the registration papers to be transferred without the signature of the recorded owner:

(i)              Death of the recorded owner; or

(ii)             foreclosure of any lien; or

(iii)            by any order or decree of court; or

(iv)            otherwise by operation of law.

 

5.      As it has been being applied, the 4th of the foregoing events has not been clearly recognized; and foreclosure of lien – which unless the recorded owner had failed to pay a board or training bill causing an agister’s lien to be created, would, itself, require a court process to obtain a court order foreclosing the lien, which is an expense most horse owners cannot easily afford.

 

6.      A person who has purchased a horse lawfully, whether from the recorded owner or an intermediary owner, is the legal owner of the horse.  

 

7.      A breeder has a legitimate interest in the stock their program produces and the further production of the traits their breeding program seeks to perpetuate, and may not feel that all horses produced through their program should be used as breeding stock.  

 

8.      Reasonable rules should balance the interests of the horse’s legal owner with those of the breeder.

 

PROPOSAL:

The Registration Commission will create a new category of registration (“Limited Registration”), for horses (i) proven by their DNA to have been previously registered or, if not previously registered, proven by their DNA to have been produced by known parents whose DNA and/or blood type is of record; but (ii) for which the recorded owner (or the parents’ recorded owner(s)) is/are not willing or able to transfer the full registration of the horse to the horse’s lawful owner.  

For purposes of the foregoing, a lawful owner is (i) a person who would be considered a bona fide purchaser of the horse for value under the law, being someone who has acquired the horse through a good faith purchase or inheritance; or (ii) someone who has acquired ownership of the horse from (A) a governmental agency that has lawfully taken possession of the horse, (B) a state licensed rescue, in states which license recue organizations, or  (C) a 501 (c)(3) organization, in states that do not license rescue organizations, in all cases after the hold period required by law in the state where the rescue and/or seizure occurred.  

A good faith purchase may be shown through a bill of sale that is not contested by the recorded full registration owner within sixty days of notice being delivered to the last known address of such last recorded owner.  If the horse has not previously been registered, notice must be sent to the last known address of each the horse’s registered sire and dam.

If the recorded full registration owner does contest the purchase within the sixty-day period, no registration of the horse will be given, until such contest has been resolved through court, arbitration, or a settlement signed by all parties.  

If a horse is acquired from a governmental agency, licensed rescue, or 501(c)(3) organization in compliance with applicable law and the opinion of an attorney opining to such compliance is provided by the lawful owner,  notice to the recorded owner is not required.

Horses with Limited Registration will not be recognized for purposes of breeding; but are allowed to compete at breed shows and as Arabians or part Arabians, as their DNA determines, for all purposes except classes intended to showcase breeding stock.

A breeder may select Limited Registration or full registration for foals produced by that breeder.  If Limited Registration is selected, the horse will not be recognized as an Arabian for breeding purposes, unless the breeder signs a consent form to have the registration changed to full registration.

As it is anticipated that the foregoing rule changes will create a financial obligation on the Arabian Horse Association, to create and maintain the Limited Registration data base, fees for Limited Registration will initially be established to register or transfer a horse as a horse with Limited Registration in the same amount as for full registration;   and the fee schedule will be re-visited after three years to determine if adjustment is necessary to bring the registration and transfer fees in line with the costs of establishing and maintaining the Limited Registration database, after considering the fees generated both through registration and transfer of Limited Registration horses; and through fees generated through competitions at which such horses compete. 

CONCLUSION:

“That’s the way it has always been done” is never the reason to continue the status quo.  Society has changed; the horse industry has changed; and the rules for registration need to change to address the current environment and industry challenges; and to balance the interests of the lawful owner of a horse and the horse itself, with those of its breeder or prior intermediary owner.  A lawful owner of a horse should be allowed to have the horse connected with its heritage and, if they so choose, to compete with their horse; and the welfare, health, and safety of Arabian and part-Arabian horses should be of primary importance to all who have the privilege of owning one. 

OPPORTUNITY:

All challenges and obstacles can be an opportunity for growth and improvement.   Enabling new families the ability to own a “registered” horse that they can show in Arabian breed shows accomplishes multiple positive outcomes including:

·         Increasing the number of recognized registered Arabians in the United States

·         Providing value to rescue horses and other horses that they do not have under the full registration rules

·         Bringing new members into the Arabian Horse Association

·         Growing the Arabian horse industry rather than the “Kill Pen Industry”

·         Demonstrating AHA’s and The registry’s joint mission of protecting Arabian bred horses

·         Bringing in additional revenue and participation to Arabian breed shows and other events. 

The drafters of this proposal are longtime breeders, competitors, owners, and lovers of Arabian and part-Arabian horses; and include professional trainers and amateurs, a licensed judge, a  steward, a professional show secretary, a national show commissioner, and regional Director.  We are a cross section of the Arabian horse industry; and we, respectfully, ask that the Arabian Horse Association Registration Commission adopt this proposal to allow our breed to be on the forefront of addressing the challenges that our industry and sport faces; and to make the welfare of Arabian bred horses  everyone’s  priority.  

 
[1] Many believe the actual number is in the thousands.
[2] The average cost of a small trial typically is between $25,000 and $50,000.  https://www.stimmel-law.com/en/articles/cost-benefit-american-litigation