10 Ways to Fix The Trotty Gaited Horse
By Gaye DeRusso
Gaited horses that trot may have backs that are shorter and rounder than the average for their breed. Horses that are low headed can tend to be more toward the trot vs high headed horses can be more toward the pace.
When they go faster than a walk, or slow gait, they usually lower their head and round their back more which easily tips them over to a trot. The easiest gait to get from the very trotty horses is the fox trot since it is also a diagonal gait, but 4 beats instead of the trot which is 2 beats. But many can do lateral gaits it just takes more work.
There are many reasons gaited horses trot. Here are a few -breeding, conformation, saddle fit, unconditioned, pain and riding your horse past its gait speed, to name a few. So here are some ways to help fix your horse from trotting.
1. Have a chiropractor or body worker evaluate your horse. They can relieve sore and blocked muscles. They can also give you good stretching exercises to do with your horse in between sessions.
2. Make sure your saddle fits correctly and puts you in a balanced position on your horse. If the saddle pinches your horse, it may cause him pain to gait and therefore, he does not want to gait. If the saddle tips you forward in a more perched position instead of a balanced position with your leg under you, this position can also cause trotting because it puts more of your weight on their front end.
3. Teach your horse to have a good flat walk, work him up and down hills. Going uphill ask him to walk as fast as he can but half halt on the rein if he tries to trot or canter. Downhill walk as fast as he can as this will make him more lateral and can help you get his next gait. When he is going faster than a regular walk and not trotting, stop and reward so they understand this is what you want.
4. Practice lateral bending exercises - circles, serpentine, spiral circles, leg yield, shoulder in and haunches in. All these exercises will make the horse more supple, relaxed, build strength and help separate the horses' legs. Once they can do this well at a slow walk with no trot, start to add a little bit more speed to start your flat walk. This will be the hardest part, do not try and go any faster, stay at your flat walk. He must be able to flat walk well with the correct foot fall before you go faster, and this may take 3 months.
If at any time he tries to trot, stop and back up 5 steps and then immediately go forward, do not give any rest. Anytime he is flat walking well, stop and give him a rest on a loose rein. Then start again after a couple of minutes. So, he is rewarded when he gaits and given more work when he trots.
5. Condition your horse to gait. Some have never been conditioned correctly. Work his flat walk in the arena as above and on the trail, but do not go any faster. Work this flat walk for 3 months if possible. This will increase your horse's strength, balance, so he will be able to go faster once conditioned. It is better to stay at the flat walk too long then too short when conditioning your horse. A month is not long enough. If you try and go faster before he is conditioned, he will try and go back to trotting.
Flat Walk all the hills on the trail and make sure your horse keeps his neutral or a little higher and you feel him pushing with his hindquarter. Go faster down all the hills. Down hills make horses go more lateral toward a pace, which will help the trotty horse become more lateral.
6. After 3 months start to ask for more speed, if you feel them getting trotty on trail, then only do your gait on down hills and the flat. On uphills slow down so he does not trot or canter if you need to catch up with your friends.
7. Make sure you are riding your horse balanced. Keep your shoulders over your hips and your heels underneath your hips. Keep your weight right behind the horse's withers where he is the strongest. You can try tipping your pelvis backward as this sometimes will help a trotty horse. This is called a chair position and it can help the trotty horse by getting its weight more toward its hindquarters. You can also put some saddle bags on the back of the saddle with water bottles to add more weight to the backend until they are conditioned to gait. Think of it as you are lifting weights to get stronger.
8. Raising your horse's head can help some horses that trot start gaiting. By raising their head, the horse inverts its back and tenses muscles which helps the horse go more toward a pace (lateral). When the horse lowers its head, it rounds its back which makes it go more toward the trot. But you will have to play around to see what head position of the horse helps the most with its gait. Also, some horses if you turn their head slightly to the side and raise it, will help to get the gait, so play around and see if either one helps your horse.
Do not allow the horse to trot under saddle or it will not understand you do not want to trot. Make sure you slow it back down or stop and back up and then go forward every time it trots. Never stop and rest when your horse trots.
9. Try to walk or gait uphills. If you let your horse canter all the hills it will not build up its strength, as cantering is easier. They must build the strength to hold the gait on uphills and the only way to do this is conditioning.
10. Each horse has a limit to the speed of their gait. If your horse is smooth when he is slow but trots as he goes faster, then you may be riding him past his gaiting speed. Remember most horses intermediate gait speed is between 5-7 mph. Some will gait faster, and some will be slower.
All these things I have listed, will build strength but if you keep riding your horse past his speed to gait, then you will always get the trot. The pace and trot are at the end of the gaited spectrum
Trot- fox trot- fox walk- flat walk-running walk or saddle gait- rack- step pace - Pace
So, keep this in mind, that maybe you are just riding him too fast. Remember I give online lessons and a couple lessons can save you years of frustration. But if you don't take a lesson, you may be chasing the gait and doing everything wrong. Make the effort to get help.
I have seen so many riders and non-gaited trainers ride the horse past their gait, then claim the horse just trots. When in fact the horse gaits well, but not as fast as they are trying to get. Remember their gaits are below the pace and the trot not faster than the pace or trot.
By Gaye DeRusso
Gaited horses that trot may have backs that are shorter and rounder than the average for their breed. Horses that are low headed can tend to be more toward the trot vs high headed horses can be more toward the pace.
When they go faster than a walk, or slow gait, they usually lower their head and round their back more which easily tips them over to a trot. The easiest gait to get from the very trotty horses is the fox trot since it is also a diagonal gait, but 4 beats instead of the trot which is 2 beats. But many can do lateral gaits it just takes more work.
There are many reasons gaited horses trot. Here are a few -breeding, conformation, saddle fit, unconditioned, pain and riding your horse past its gait speed, to name a few. So here are some ways to help fix your horse from trotting.
1. Have a chiropractor or body worker evaluate your horse. They can relieve sore and blocked muscles. They can also give you good stretching exercises to do with your horse in between sessions.
2. Make sure your saddle fits correctly and puts you in a balanced position on your horse. If the saddle pinches your horse, it may cause him pain to gait and therefore, he does not want to gait. If the saddle tips you forward in a more perched position instead of a balanced position with your leg under you, this position can also cause trotting because it puts more of your weight on their front end.
3. Teach your horse to have a good flat walk, work him up and down hills. Going uphill ask him to walk as fast as he can but half halt on the rein if he tries to trot or canter. Downhill walk as fast as he can as this will make him more lateral and can help you get his next gait. When he is going faster than a regular walk and not trotting, stop and reward so they understand this is what you want.
4. Practice lateral bending exercises - circles, serpentine, spiral circles, leg yield, shoulder in and haunches in. All these exercises will make the horse more supple, relaxed, build strength and help separate the horses' legs. Once they can do this well at a slow walk with no trot, start to add a little bit more speed to start your flat walk. This will be the hardest part, do not try and go any faster, stay at your flat walk. He must be able to flat walk well with the correct foot fall before you go faster, and this may take 3 months.
If at any time he tries to trot, stop and back up 5 steps and then immediately go forward, do not give any rest. Anytime he is flat walking well, stop and give him a rest on a loose rein. Then start again after a couple of minutes. So, he is rewarded when he gaits and given more work when he trots.
5. Condition your horse to gait. Some have never been conditioned correctly. Work his flat walk in the arena as above and on the trail, but do not go any faster. Work this flat walk for 3 months if possible. This will increase your horse's strength, balance, so he will be able to go faster once conditioned. It is better to stay at the flat walk too long then too short when conditioning your horse. A month is not long enough. If you try and go faster before he is conditioned, he will try and go back to trotting.
Flat Walk all the hills on the trail and make sure your horse keeps his neutral or a little higher and you feel him pushing with his hindquarter. Go faster down all the hills. Down hills make horses go more lateral toward a pace, which will help the trotty horse become more lateral.
6. After 3 months start to ask for more speed, if you feel them getting trotty on trail, then only do your gait on down hills and the flat. On uphills slow down so he does not trot or canter if you need to catch up with your friends.
7. Make sure you are riding your horse balanced. Keep your shoulders over your hips and your heels underneath your hips. Keep your weight right behind the horse's withers where he is the strongest. You can try tipping your pelvis backward as this sometimes will help a trotty horse. This is called a chair position and it can help the trotty horse by getting its weight more toward its hindquarters. You can also put some saddle bags on the back of the saddle with water bottles to add more weight to the backend until they are conditioned to gait. Think of it as you are lifting weights to get stronger.
8. Raising your horse's head can help some horses that trot start gaiting. By raising their head, the horse inverts its back and tenses muscles which helps the horse go more toward a pace (lateral). When the horse lowers its head, it rounds its back which makes it go more toward the trot. But you will have to play around to see what head position of the horse helps the most with its gait. Also, some horses if you turn their head slightly to the side and raise it, will help to get the gait, so play around and see if either one helps your horse.
Do not allow the horse to trot under saddle or it will not understand you do not want to trot. Make sure you slow it back down or stop and back up and then go forward every time it trots. Never stop and rest when your horse trots.
9. Try to walk or gait uphills. If you let your horse canter all the hills it will not build up its strength, as cantering is easier. They must build the strength to hold the gait on uphills and the only way to do this is conditioning.
10. Each horse has a limit to the speed of their gait. If your horse is smooth when he is slow but trots as he goes faster, then you may be riding him past his gaiting speed. Remember most horses intermediate gait speed is between 5-7 mph. Some will gait faster, and some will be slower.
All these things I have listed, will build strength but if you keep riding your horse past his speed to gait, then you will always get the trot. The pace and trot are at the end of the gaited spectrum
Trot- fox trot- fox walk- flat walk-running walk or saddle gait- rack- step pace - Pace
So, keep this in mind, that maybe you are just riding him too fast. Remember I give online lessons and a couple lessons can save you years of frustration. But if you don't take a lesson, you may be chasing the gait and doing everything wrong. Make the effort to get help.
I have seen so many riders and non-gaited trainers ride the horse past their gait, then claim the horse just trots. When in fact the horse gaits well, but not as fast as they are trying to get. Remember their gaits are below the pace and the trot not faster than the pace or trot.