Gaited horses?

[SugarCubes]

I know absolutely nothing about gaited horse, I’ve ridden an MFT on a trail ride as a kid and a Paso Fino on the beach on vacation and that’s it!

However, I just adopted a little rescue pony who is definitely a Heinz 57 :lol:! He’s been lightly backed, but is super green. I took him for a lesson yesterday, and we were surprised to see that he looks like he could be gaited…but it wasn’t all the time. When I first looked at him, he had a normal trot and canter, but yesterday he would trot normally, and then would do something different that was really smooth, then he’d go back to a trot.

I’m in the h/j world, and even my trainer has no idea what he was doing, so educate me COTH! What do some of the gaits look like? I’ve searched youtube but videos of TWHs and MFTs in the show ring aren’t helpful, I’m looking to see what these gaits naturally look like in an untrained, green horse.

Because he is such a mutt, if he happens to be 1/2 gaited, would it make sense for him to have a normal trot as well as something else? Someone mentioned he looks like he’s part rocky mountain horse, I’m not familiar with them at all, what is their gait like?

[DoodlesMom]

You are describing exactly what my horse does.

I got a little Heinz 57, who we think is a Morgan/Standardbred. He’s got the classic Morgan trot, but he also has something… else. As he’s gotten older, it’s become more apparent that he’s gaited, and switches occasionally. Just the other day he was trotting in the ring and switched to a pace. It’s very interesting when you’re riding!

What does he look like? We are relatively sure of my guy’s breeding, because he is very textbook-y Morgan. But we were told he was a Standardbred/Saddlebred cross, so who really knows. It just got more confusing when he started gaiting!

FWIW, I also know a papered TWH who switches to a trot when he’s feeling lazy. Super confusing (and bumpy!).

[Guilherme]

It’s not really all that uncommon for some breeds to produce horses with a “fourth gear.” To really know you’ve got to get the horse fed, legged up, and ready to work. Then you can “experiment” and see what happens as you vary rider position, rein aid, legs, and balance. You may find that the “gait” is just imbalance or the horse not know where to put its feet. Or you may find a consistent movement.

But all the soft gaits take more energy from the horse than a normal trot. That being the case the horse has to be fit and strong enough to express the gait. If this is a recent acquisition do a lot of walking, particularly up long, gradual hills. After a few weeks of this then try pushing the walking speed with your seat and legs and see what you get.

Good luck as you go forward.

G.

[Leather]

Yup, gaited horses can usually trot too!

The two ends of the spectrum are the trot and the pace, with a bunch of variations in between. Most gaited horses can perform more than one variation of these, depending on how they are carrying themselves (rounded or hollow).

My Paso tends to naturally fall into the middle with her gait (corto/rack) but can definitely trot and pace as well. If she’s going up a hill and drops her neck and rounds her back, she trots. If she’s nervous about something and has her head up in the air and her back is hollow she can pace.

Good videos to show the range of gaits:
https://youtu.be/SMmcGUSUSA0
https://youtu.be/R9x29h7cCYc
https://youtu.be/aoB6FFP7a84

[SugarCubes]

[QUOTE=DoodlesMom;8652937]
You are describing exactly what my horse does.

I got a little Heinz 57, who we think is a Morgan/Standardbred. He’s got the classic Morgan trot, but he also has something… else. As he’s gotten older, it’s become more apparent that he’s gaited, and switches occasionally. Just the other day he was trotting in the ring and switched to a pace. It’s very interesting when you’re riding!

What does he look like? We are relatively sure of my guy’s breeding, because he is very textbook-y Morgan. But we were told he was a Standardbred/Saddlebred cross, so who really knows. It just got more confusing when he started gaiting!

FWIW, I also know a papered TWH who switches to a trot when he’s feeling lazy. Super confusing (and bumpy!).[/QUOTE]

Great info guys, thank you!! So would it make sense that down the road we will be able to train him to either trot or do his little gait depending on what I ask him? I’m hoping to show him so we would need a solid trot! The rescue I got him from thought he was a Morgan cross, but he doesn’t move like a Morgan at all, he has more daisy cutter movement. I’m thinking of doing a genetic test to see what breeds we’re dealing with, might make training a little easier if I know what comes naturally to him!

Here’s a pic: https://www.instagram.com/p/BE83-xIK8RyU1YgrtEDPqRRZTvPr9MLbrphP7E0/?taken-by=hkijo

[walkinthewalk]

While they aren’t gaited, there could be some Hackney in there.

There is a gaited Morgan Horse registry and a Morgan mare (Maggie Marshall) is the foundation mare of record for the Tennessee Walking Horse.

[Kwill]

Shhh… my Paso Fino trots at liberty. The former owner would go nuts if he knew I think! I don’t let him do it under saddle. But gaited horses can trot.

Morgans can be gaited, so you don’t need to rule Morgans out.

I think you could get him to gait on command by getting him collected and seeing if he does it. To gait they need to raise the base of the neck, as I understand it, so you need to get the horse well into a frame and see what happens when you push him forward. Little tiny half halts on each side can give the signal to keep gaiting as you sit deep.

Good luck!

[aliceo]

i have a RMH. they usually do a running walk or an amble. they do trot also. if you want to develop your new horse’s gait, the best thing to do is lots and lots of fast power walking.

there is an excellent book that will help you identify the gaits and help you develop them:

Easy-Gaited Horses, by Lee Ziegler

[ilmjumper]

If you don’t want him to gait though, just keep encouraging the trot. Every time he breaks into a gait, stop and go back to trotting.

We actually used to have one that would do both…she’d go in the gaited classes and win, and then go in the hunter classes and win! A lot of breeds have a soft gait in there somewhere, I’ve seen gaited QHs before…it wasn’t a pretty gait lol but for going down a trail all day it was nice.

[Foxtrot_s]

My Standardbred mare would go into a pace after a strenuous day (say hunting).
That was the best time as the pace is so easy to sit especially when I was tired
so the trip home was nice and easy.