The Horse That Wouldn't Trot

Great reviews on this new book, The Horse That Wouldn't Trot:

Imus Saddle

Interesting information on this video:

What Gait / Perdla

What gait for this Icelandic Horse, Perdla:

What Gait / Icelandic Horses

What gait are these Icelandic Horses doing?

Saddle Fit for High Withered Horse

My friend has tried fourteen different saddles on her high-withered Missouri Fox Trotter during the five years she has owned this eight-year-old gelding. She has tried a Corrector pad, but it sawed on his withers.

Right now, she is tryng a Wintech Australian-style saddle with Cair panels and adjustable gullet, with a supracor pad. I rode him with it today and it left an even sweat pattern, but another friend suggested that the saddle was bridging. Certainly the horse was happier than the last time I rode him with a Tucker High Plains Endurance saddle. That time he was fussy and rung his tail quite a bit.

She wanted me to ask if anyone on the list had dealt with a horse with a back similar to this.

Weight Changes Gait

Elephant gaits are generally limited to different speeds of the walk; slow, medium, and faster. Their gait can be similar to a running walk or a saddle rack.

Except... if the weight is removed... such as in swimming... elephants are able to move diagonally similar to the trot of the horse.

Many gaited horses show only a trot at liberty; but when carrying a rider, the additional weight brings out an intermediate gait such as fox trot, running walk, saddle rack, rack, stepping pace, or pace.

Natural Gait Paso Fino

Posted by the owner of the horse: I bought this horse from a man who buys horses at auctions and resells most of them to slaughter houses. He told me he bought him at an auction in Oregon in November, he is now happily living with me in Washington. He is a very well trained gaited gelding who was obviously loved at one point in his life. I would love to learn more about him. I named him Little Guy, he is a sweetheart. If this horse looks familiar and you think you may know him, please contact me.

What Gait / Missouri Fox Trotter

What gait is this Missouri Fox Trotter doing?

What Gait / Walkaloosa

What gait is this grey Walkaloosa doing?

Student Wins Public Speaking Contest with Speech About Soring

Emily Woolley is a Mount Si High School (Snoqualmie, WA) graduating senior, who joined 4H eight years ago with her horse named Red. In 2006, she won the Washington state 4H Equine Public Speaking Contest with a speech about soring.

"It’s prevalent in the gaited horse industry when people use chemical means, so they have a more flashy gait," Woolley said. "They put chemicals on their horse’s legs and on the bottom of the feet and add pads to the feet, so when the horses hoof hits the ground, it hurts and they lift their leg higher."

Congratulations to Emily, who is also class valedictorian!

Link to original article: Snovalley Star

What Gait / Pancho

This is Amanda's Peruvian Paso, Pancho.

What Gait?

What gait is this gaited pony doing?

What Gait / TWH

What gait is this Tennesee Walking Horse doing?

Confidential Soring Interviews

From the recent FOSH conference, confidential soring interviews with those who sore Tennessee Walking Horses.

What Gait / Galde

What gait is this cold-blooded horse in Norway doing?

What Gait / What Breed of Horse

The rider is from Thailand, but it is unknown where the riding and the video took place.

What breed is this horse? What gait is it doing?

Level 3 Parelli with Gaited Paso Horse

This is a Level 3 Parelli Natural Horsemanship audition with Jackie and Mystic, the Paso Fino gelding.

What Is Gait?

WHAT IS GAIT AND WHAT PRODUCES A GAITED HORSE?
By Eldon Eadie


Ask a hundred different people and you will likely get a hundred different answers: Some will say that gait is mainly over stride, head nod, and evenly timed hoof beats. Others will say that it is termino, brio (fire), and the inability to trot. Some will say that a horse has to be loose moving in order to gait. Others will say that a horse has to be tight.

Some will say that it is mainly the result of training, others will emphasize conformation, or bone structure, or breeding (genetics), or disposition, or shoeing, or hoof angle, or the type of bit used, or the degree of collection, or the conditioning of the horse, or the attitude of the rider, or the skill of the rider, or the brand of scootin' juice (soring), or the type of action devices used, or the number of World Grand Champions on its pedigree.

The one common denominator between all breeds of gaited horses and all types within those breeds is that gait is the ability of the horse to maintain an evenly timed hoofbeat at an increase of speed. Whether you call it the tolt or the running walk is irrelevant.

Gait is the programming in the horse's brain that makes it possible to hold an evenly timed footfall at an increase of speed. All of the above factors contribute to the quality of gait in different ways.

Each breed has a different standard with different definitions of gait that emphasize various aspects of gait, but in all cases a horse that breaks with an increase of speed, in a clear sharp transition from a walk to a trot or pace, is un-gaited.

A horse that holds an even timed footfall (or drifts slightly) is gaited. Take a look at your average Quarter Horse or Thoroughbred. With an increase of speed the horse will shift gears in a very distinct transition from a walk to a trot. When you see this type of activity in a gaited breed, you are not looking at gait. Even if the horse shifts in a clear transition to the pace, it is still not showing gait.

Most well gaited horses are capable of this kind of clear transition at times but what you want to see is a slow drift from a walk to a middle gait somewhere between a trot and a pace or better yet, no drift at all. A strong gaited horse will just continue to walk with any increase in speed. It may not be winging (termino) or it may not be nodding, but if it is doing an even gait at speed, without action devices or scootin' juice, it is strong gaited.

This brings us to the two main aspects of gait. One is the programming of the brain of the horse. This aspect is mainly determined by genetics but can be influenced very significantly by training and some of the other factors mentioned above. This aspect gives the horse the ability to maintain an even gait at speed.

The other aspect of gait is the bone structure of the horse (conformation). This aspect is also mainly determined by genetics but can be very significantly enhanced by action devices and other methods. It is the conformation of the horse that gives it the head nod and over stride that is very much a part of the running walk.

If you are breeding natural gaited horses, you need to be very careful about both aspects of gait. You need the natural ability to maintain an even gait at speed and you need good conformation of movement (bone structure).

Rack and Pace

Smooth transition from rack to pace:



Versus the "yank, yank, yank" of the riders of Icelandic Horses to get pace:

http://blip.tv/play/23i3kSuQSg

Tolt

It's labeled a "tolt", but it's a saddle rack; how does it look? Is the rider's body still? Are the hands following? Is the horse fluid? how much contact? does it look natural?

Tennessee Walking Horse Cumberland Classic

The TWH Cumberland Classic video is on-line here:

http://walkinghorseworld.com/forums/index.php?topic=1.0

You can register, login, and view the videos for free.

Next live coverage:


Mid-Atlantic Plantation Classic Horse Show
April 17-18, 2009

Old Dominion Gaited Horse Association's Gaited Classic
April 17-18, 2009

Trouble With Gaited Horse

Are you having trouble with your gaited horse? If you need help with your horse, or other gaited horse owners to discuss things with, you may find some answers on the Gaited Horse discussion list.

There's a thread about someone needing help with her Peruvian Paso:

Trouble with my Peruvian.. help?

We also study gaited horse biomechanics and gaits. Here are some gaited horse videos:

Several Gaited Horse videos

For a description of gaits, see: Gait Information

What Gait / Herculese

What gait is this Tennessee Walking Horse, Herculese, doing?

Termino or Winging

Termino is a type of movement performed by Peruvian Pasos, originating from the shoulder. Termino is not the same as winging which is a conformation fault.

What Gait / Chestnut

What gait is this chestnut gaited horse doing?

The video was taken at a gaited horse clinic and different people were trying different horses, so there is an "adjustment" period of time while the horse gets used to the rider, and the rider tries to determine how to use his body to communicate with the horse to get the smoothest gait from the horse.

What Gait / Hrund

This is Hrund, an Icelandic Horse mare. What gait is she doing?

What Gait / Icelandic Horse

What gait is this Icelandic Horse doing?

What Gait / Regina

What gait is this Icelandic Horse, Regina, doing?

Lateral Gait

This is a lateral walk (i.e. on the "pacey" side):

Shotgun Sally

Shotgun Sally is a Standardbred mare who racks, speed racks, and step paces, all barefoot.

Read what the owner says at the youtube link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seQN3OJD8HU

(or double click onto the video below)

Soring Articles

Here are the links on the American Farriers' Journal, to some current articles on soring gaited horses:

[] Soring: Disgraceful Practice Continues (Part 1)

[] Soring: Pressure Mounts To End Soring (Part 2)

[] Soring: Serious Challenges To Ending Soring (Part 3)

[] Soring: Turning Up The Heat On Soring (Part 4)