News

The legal classification of horses as livestock is a cornerstone of U.S. equine policy. It affects how horses are regulated, how equine operations are supported, and how the industry participates in federal and state agricultural programs. Understanding its importance...

COMMUNITY NOTE:Fireworks & Horse Safety A message from your local horse owners to our neighbors courtesy of the Pennsylvania Equine Council Fireworks may be fun for people—but for horses, they can be dangerous, confusing, and even deadly. Horses are prey animals...

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has issued an Interstate Quarantine Order regarding the Neurologic Form of Equine Herpes Virus (EHV‑1), also known as Equine Herpesvirus Myeloencephalopathy (EHM). As President of the Pennsylvania Equine Council, I want to...

Screwworm Special BulletinNew World Screwworm continues to creep towards the United States border from Mexico. On September 21, 2025 Mexico’s National Service of Agro-Alimientary Health, Safety, and Quality (SENASICA) confirmed the detection of New World Screwworm...

An Animal Feed Operation (AFO) is any animal feeding operation where animals are kept and raised in confined situations on a property for a total of 45 days in any 12-month period. Feed for livestock housed on the property is not grown on any portion of the facility...

The Pennsylvania Equine Council (PEC) condemns the use of any procedure, device, or substance intentionally used to cause pain, discomfort, or irritation in order to force a horse to move or perform in a sored/artificial manner of movement. To this end, the...

Changes in federal financial aid rules, effective this year, may make it much more expensive for farm families to send their children to college. A family’s contributions now may be thousands of dollars more than last year. * read more

Beginning Dec. 1, 2025, all horses competing USEF-licensed competitions must be microchipped.From the US Equestrian Communications Department  US Equestrian strives to consistently ensure the safety and welfare of both our human and equine athletes. One fundamental...

AORA is a bipartisan recreation package that will help get people outdoors by modernizing federal systems and eliminating barriers at no cost to taxpayers. This first-of-its-kind legislation is the result of decades of work by stakeholders and Congress. *read more

Animal Cruelty Laws in Pennsylvania Mistreating, neglecting, or abandoning animals, or tethering dogs outside under certain conditions can lead to criminal charges. Updated: Jan 25th, 2023 Cruelty to animals is illegal in Pennsylvania, as it is across the country. The...

New & Improved Horse Microchip Look Up Website Microchips are extremely important for keeping your horses safe. Many animals reunite with their owners thanks to their chips. A microchip is a great way to guarantee identity and facilitate fair competition. The...

How does it work?• “Grazing Advisors” who are current or retired livestockand horse farm managers provide technical adviceon pasture improvement, fencing, grazing planning,weed management, soil health, forage species selectionand other grazing-related questions for...

Neglect to the point of suffering is cruelty. Often, the animals have died or have to be euthanized. Why  wasn’t this reported earlier? Surely someone saw the situation before it got to that point. Well, maybe not, but if you see a problem and do nothing, are you...

Please note the following order that came out from Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) regarding the carcasses of euthanized animals (horses included) using Pentobarbitol... click here for article

You have seen the name Gailey Legal Group as one of our major sponsors for years. Herm Gailey, in addition to being an attorney, is a horseman and has been one his entire life. As we become "seasoned", there comes a time when we realize that much of what we routinely...

As an overview, we must understand that while driver licensing and vehicle registration are separate, they affect each other.  Driver licensing has two components.  The first is to determine if you are commercial or non-commercial.  Simply put, you are...

We have celebrated more than 30 years of service to the equine community in PA. Over the years we have offered more benefits and broadened our scope of activity in response to the needs and desires of our membership. Please take a moment to review the things we do and...