9 CFR § 11.3Chapter I

§ 11.3 Scar rule.

Primary source

Verbatim text below is from the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR), a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the current version with the eCFR before relying on it for any legal matter.

Full Text

The scar rule applies to all horses born on or after October 1, 1975. Horses subject to this rule that do not meet the following scar rule criteria shall be considered to be “sore” and are subject to all prohibitions of section 5 of the Act. The scar rule criteria are as follows:

5(a) The anterior and anterior-lateral surfaces of the fore pasterns (extensor surface) must be free of bilateral granulomas, other bilateral pathological evidence of inflammation, and, other bilateral evidence of abuse indicative of soring including, but not limited to, excessive loss of hair.

(b) The posterior surfaces of the pasterns (flexor surface), including the sulcus or “pocket” may show bilateral areas of uniformly thickened epithelial tissue if such areas are free of proliferating granuloma tissue, irritation, moisture, edema, or other evidence of inflammation.

3 4 [Reserved]5 Granuloma is defined as any one of a rather large group of fairly distinctive focal lesions that are formed as a result of inflammatory reactions caused by biological, chemical, or physical agents.

[44 FR 25179, Apr. 27, 1979, as amended at 53 FR 14782, Apr. 26, 1988, 53 FR 28373, July 28, 1988]

eCFR data current as of: June 10, 2026

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