Walking Horses were originally developed mainly in the southeastern US in the 1800s as reliable comfortable all-purpose horses. BEFORE there was the TWHBEA, there were walking horses. Most people down here called them plantation horses, or plantation walkers because they were very favored by planters, foremen and overseers who had to travel all over the plantations checking on how the work was going-- this was before mechanized farming when it took gangs of people to do the work using teams of mules and even hand tools. Often they had to travel between plantations to check on the work-- that’s right many plantations were actually made up of large tracts that were not all in one place next to each other.
These walking horses were also favored by people who had to travel great distances over roads that could not always accomodate a buggy or wagon-- think circuit riding judges and preachers-- and even some doctors. Lawmen liked walkers too for mounts when they went out with a posse-- so did the slave catchers. Anyone whose business kept them in the saddle for long periods, or distances prized walkers becsue of the easy gaits that were quite brisk in most cases.
According to Dr. Womack, and Mr. Green, I believe, the first horse we know of with a documented name who performed the running walk was a horse called Bald Stockings. Now Bald Stockings lived in the 1830s – a full century BEFORE the THWBA, now the TWHBEA came into existance.
I’m not saying that people in Tennessee and even Kentucky were not breeding walkers-- these are well known horse producing states. BUT people throughout the South were breeding and producinig walking horses or plantation horses or plantation walkers. When the TN boys started their stud book-- a number of the foundation horses and the 00 horses came from states other than TN. Many of these horses were also already registered as Standardbreds or even Morgans.
Walkers were the original comfortable endurance horse in the US. And a well-bred, naturally gaited walker that is properly trained and prepared can compete successfully in long distance trail competitions or endurance rides.
Unlike the Spanish gaited breeds, walkers have calm forgiving natures-- you don’t have to worry about most well-bred experienced walkers jumping out from under you because a leaf floats by. I know the PP and PF affectionatos like their “brio” but I like a horse who is not so full of himself. And yes, I have ridden these horses- I own a PP that I can’t ride because he has shown symptoms of DSLD – a condition many PP breeders deny exists. I also have PF gelding that I don’t particularly enjoy riding becasue I can never fully relax on him–every leaf is a horse eating boogy out to get him.
Back to walkers. The problem, IMHO, started for the walkers when their breeders caught the show ring bug that had already infected the ASB breeders to some extent. But remember, in the early days most of these shows were county fair type shows where normally shod stallions, geldings and mares competed. Naturally, people wanted to breed their mares to a horse that had won some ribbons and was held by the judges to be a good example of the breed. Horses sired by a stallion “who had done something” or out of a mare with a show record always have brought more than horses by an unknown or out of an unknown - that’s just a fact-- people want the cachet of a “name brand.”.
Once there became a show world where horses were valued ONLY because of their show records, not because of any real world accomplishments, then stuff started to happen-- bad stuff. The problem with the TWH world is that the show world is what controls everything – and by that I mean the Big Lick show world-- the flatshod show horses have alweays been looked at as “also rans.” If you don’t believe me, look at the differnce in the sales prices on the whole and look at the difference in the stud fees on the whole.
As far as “Champagne Watchout”-- well I had already turned my back on ALL of the TWH show world before he came along. But I can understand someone’s desire to want to show their horse in the World Grand Championship Stake-- not just the plantation world grand championship. But all in all I view it as a sort of stunt and a kind of sell out-- an admission that flatshod isn’t as good as big lick by someone who was supposed to be a champion of the sound flatshod horse. That is just my humble opinion.
Anyway back to the question-- “Is there a market for the TWH?” I believe there will always be a market down here in the South for a well bred naturally gaited walking horse. People like me who want to ride a horse for pure pleasure will always treasure a good Walker.
Now as far as how you find a good walker, well that takes knowledge and patience and trying before buying. And it is a fact that some of the Big Lick freaks do somehow manage to still produce some naturally gaited confortable walkers-- but they also produce a lot of pacing fools.
And I have also seen some pacing fools that come from suposedly “pure non-big lick old time stock.” You have to know what you are looking at, and if you don’t then stay away from buying a young thing or a yearling-- buy an experienced horse that has had some miles put on it under saddle.
When choosing a horse to breed your mare to, you have to consider not only the stallion’s bloodlines, but his conformation and his gait and disposition as well as your mare’s to make the right chioce. And as for breeding for color-- well unless you are breeding for a color registry, it is never a good idea, IMHO, to choose a horse just because you like its color-- if what you really want is a well gaited horse-- which IMHO, would be the primary reason you are looking to buy or breed a walking horse.
Remember the walking horse has always had the potential to be mixed gaited-- even Allen F-1 (Black Allen) was said to have been known to pace when driven-- that is why he was sold in the first place-- his breeder wanted Standardbred trotters. One thing you can say is that most walkers bred to another walker, will produce a walking horse, but the quality of the gaits in the offspring can vary greatly even from foal to foal of the same sire and dam-- just like race horses-- there are racing greats who have full and half siblings that never “do much” on the track.
A good rule of thumb when looking for a good walker is never to say never-- I have known several people who “rescued” big lick horses and ended up with very well-gaited flatshod pleasure horses-- some that actually had a good show career and went on to produce other winning flatshod walkers. I’ve known other people who were bitterly disappointed at the pacy gait their rescued walker possessed no matter what bit they tried or how many miles they rode or how many training videos they watched from “well known” flat shod horse trainers.
The first walker I ever rode was a registered TWH at a lesson stable in Biloxi, MS. I never knew his registered name-- he was called Big Red-- he was a very kind patient big red chestnut gelding. He had never been anywhere near a show ring, but he taught countless children how to ride for the ring-- and also he went out on trails, too. (This was in the 50s before the padded and chained big lick mania had fully taken hold.)
And as far as padded horses not making good plantation show horses, well I know lots of winning flatshod horses who were “taken down” and became good plantation and liteshod show horses. I have also owned several winning plantation or liteshod horses had who had padded up horses all over their papers. One that comes to mind is Tin Lizzie- an own daughter of Sun’s Delight D (padded up show WGC) who was my son’s flatshod horse who won all kinds of classes – including versatility classes like pole bending, jumping, barrel racing and western pleasure two-gait in addition to the regular saddleseat classes. Another good flatshod horse we bred is a son of Tin Lizzie-- Double Delight of Pride (originally registered as Hamilton’s Legacy) who was exported to Germany and stands at stud there. He has get winning in the European show rings now. Well he has both WGC Pride of Midnight HF and WGC Sun’s Delight D on his papers- more than once, and he is producing good solid natural walking horses.
There are really no hard and fast rules for picking a good walker. To paraphrase Forest Gump, “A walking horse is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’ll get.”
I don’t find this odd or objectionable; it’s just how the rules are.
but he sure is a fun trail horse. And dressage horse 