​Steps To Fix The Pacing Gaited Horse Part 1
By Gaye DeRusso
 
The pace is a gait most of us do not want under saddle. It is when the gaited horse swings both legs on the same time together then a moment of suspension and then they swing the legs on the other side. It is not a smooth ride and therefore unwanted under saddle. Besides being uncomfortable, it can also make your horse trippy and less surefooted. The pacey horse  will  swing  its legs instead of picking  its  legs up and placing them down,  so easier to catch their toes on obstacles and uneven footing. 
 
 It is bred into many gaited horses to help them gait but  you must teach the horse to gait, by teaching it a new way to  use its body which takes time. Do not worry if they pace when loose or lunging it is natural for them and will not undo what you are teaching them under saddle. 
 
 It takes work to get them to do the gait correctly but worth the work to fix it and not worry about hard pacing again. The horse has to be able to understand how to use its body and what you are asking them to do,  in order to not pace and gait well. Then they have to be conditioned to use the correct muscles, so they do not go back to  pacing once you have corrected it. I call it the right thing to do not the easy thing to do.  Remember that, it will not be easy, but it is the right thing to do, to teach them to gait correctly. 
 
 It is best to start in an arena or flat pasture to be consistent vs trail. Also, you need to establish your walk and then your flat walk first which is just a fast walk before going to faster gaits such as the fox trot, running walk or saddle gait. Otherwise, you will always be chasing the gait. From this day forward when under saddle never, ever, let the horse pace again or it will be confused on what you want and always try to pace because it is easy for them to do so.
 
 So, say it out loud  "from this day forward we will never pace again. " Very good, now I will tell you how, but remember it will not be easy but totally worth the effort and time to get a smooth gait. If this article is too long for you to get through, read parts of it each day. If your unwilling to read it all or break it up and read parts, then fixing the pace will be even harder for you. Using heavy shoes or angles or long feet is what many do to fix the pace but that is the easier way-out vs teaching the horse to correctly use its body to get the gait which takes time and patience. 
 
If you follow this steps consistently and do it correctly, your horse will start gaiting. 
 
First make sure your horse is taught the basics so it will understand your cues when you start to go faster. It needs a foundation to build on. That means teach it how to give to the bit, bend its body around a curve or circle,  serpentine, leg yield, shoulder in and teach a good whoa and back up. Without the horse knowing how to do these things it will be much harder to fix. 
 
Always warm up well, it is helpful to lunge or round pen or run your pacey horse around loose for 5- 10 minutes, otherwise they will be more pacey under saddle because they need to get the tension and excitement out to be able to relax and gait. So, if you don't you are just making it harder for you to correct the horse and will have more frustration. 
 
Ride with their head low, that’s why it is important to teach them to give to the bit first. You usually want their head level or below the front of the saddle or below your belly button. This will help relax their muscles, they need to tense up their muscles  in order to pace. That's why so many throw their heads up and invert their backs, because that makes it easy to pace. 
 
Start in an arena and just walk with their head low, make circles and patterns, the more lateral work you do the less pacey they will be when you go faster. So, a good warm up at the walk with their head low for at least 10 minutes. If they will not walk, you need that to fix that first. So, teach your horse one rein stops or make a small circle every time they speed up until they can consistently do a slow walk. 
 
The gait starts at the walk, without a good walk you won't get a good gait. So, they must be able to do a clear 4 beat walk to get a good gait. If they cannot, walk your horse over poles, the pacier they are the more poles you should use. But lunge them over them  first in case  they trip, once they figure the poles out, which may take a couple weeks, you can start riding them  over them. ( Place poles about 3 feet apart, closer if horse continues to pace like a foot apart)
 
You can use garden timber poles from home depot or a garden store, they are not very expensive, PVC poles do not work, they are too light and break. 
 
If very pacey set your poles up in a 15–20-meter circle and just continue to walk in a circle 5 minutes one way and 5 minutes the other way after you have already warmed them up with your lateral work. Try to use your half halts and leg to keep the horse out of the pace, even if you must do it every step and keep the horse bending around the circle. Any time it paces, stop immediately and back up 5 steps fast and go forward again; to tell the horse, the pace is the wrong answer and will give you more work if you do it again. 
 
Once they can walk over the poles and are no longer pacing at the slow walk, you can begin to ask for more speed. Stay in a circle instead of going straight, the circle is a lateral movement that will help separate your horse's  legs and therefore get the horse away from the pace. It  also teaches the horse how to use its back legs, to step under itself which is called engagement and drive with power. 
 
So, after your good lunging and warm up at the walk, you ride your horse at a walk in your circle with your horse’s head down and ask it for more speed. In your brain think a faster walk not a gait otherwise you will ask for too much. You just want the horse to walk faster without pacing. As you walk faster, if very pacey go over the poles, otherwise if not pacey, you can make your circle around the poles and then aim for poles if it starts to pace. 
 
Keep the horse bent as you walk faster, pressing with one calf and then the other to extend the walk. Use a dressage whip if the horse does not go forward well to encourage the walk and give light taps to reinforce your leg. If the horse tries to raise its head, hold pressure then release when it puts it down. If the horse tries to cut in or out hold it in the circle with your legs and hands. If it starts to go too fast half halt every step or every other step but still pressing with the leg lightly so it does not stop. You will have to practice and figure out how much pressure your horse needs from your hands and your legs to help them gait. 
 
Once it takes a few faster steps, stop and rest and give a good scratch or small treat. Rest for a minute or two and repeat, each time trying to get more good steps. Again, if it immediately paces stay in the circle over the poles. 
 
If it paces a hard pace, then immediately stop and back up 5 steps, no rest and immediately go forward, this tells the horse don't do that or I will make your life harder. Do this every single time it paces. If it does it by a pole, then just go over the pole but in between poles if it paces stop and backup. If the horse is not getting the message, make sure you stop as fast as you can and add more backup steps like 10. But always stop and rest when you get some good fast walking steps and never rest when it paces.
 
If you do this right and do it 3-5 days a week, your horse will be better in 2 weeks. If it is not getting better, you are doing it wrong and need to figure out which step is wrong. An online lesson can help you figure that out, if you want to contact me. 
 
I want you to practice the faster walk aka flat walk, for 5 minutes each direction then quit working on the gait, but you can work on the canter or walk on the trail. Do not, let me repeat, do not go ride fast on the trail and pace. If you let the horse pace at all anymore it will not understand and it will continue to try and pace and not get better. 
 
Once your horse can do a flat walk each direction well, keeping its head low, with you half halting and keeping leg on to keep the correct speed, then walk around the poles and only use the poles when it loses its gait. So before progressing you should be able to flat walk consistently without the poles each direction for 5 minutes. 
 
Once you can do that, then you always do your flat walk first for 10 minutes or more and then try for your next gait which is their intermediate gait.  You will do the same things for the next gait but ask for more speed by using more leg, then lighten the leg to let them know to stay that speed.
 
You must have guidance or good feel to know what the next gait feels like in order to help your horse know what you want. So, a soft bounce up and down for a fox trot, smooth or back and forth for the running walk, or smooth or a wiggle for your saddle gait. You just repeat the same thing going over poles, resting when they get any steps that are close, remember reward the try and to keep going over the poles when pacey and stopping and backing up and immediately going forward when hard pacing. 
 
Start with 3 minutes each direction working up to 5 minutes each direction for their intermediate gait.   When they can do it well start going around the poles but always have the poles in case, they get pacey. When they can do it well without the poles, then you can start trying to go out of your circle and around the arena. Once they can do that, you can start trying to gait on trail. 
 
If you do not have an arena or flat pasture, you can also do this in a round pen. If you only have trail do not fret, just  look for part 2 coming soon for steps to not pacing on the trail. 
 
 
 
 
 
 

​What's In It For Me? - The Reward
By Gaye DeRusso
 
I was  training this Ex-Show  Tennessee Walker to canter. He was trying but had no clue what I was asking and then he finally did a canter step. I stopped and made the biggest fuss and told him he was the best horse in the world and gave him a nice long scratch and a small treat. He turned around and looked at me and you could see it in his eyes the recognition that he finally had done something right. If he could have blushed through his hair, I am sure he would of. The facial expression he gave me was priceless  and at that moment, I realized, no one had probably told him he did something right before.  
 
Each day I rode him, we gaited then worked on the canter. Each day he gave me more steps and each day, I rewarded him with telling him he was doing such a good job and a nice long scratch every time he tried and got it right. Step by step we proceeded until he could canter a full circle. It did not take months or years, it took weeks. Because as soon as he understood what the right answer was, he tried so hard to get that answer right every time. 
 
So many people ask and ask horses to do all these things we want. Many times, they do not understand what we want, but they try. When they get it right most people simply give a pat and say good job and immediately ask for more instead of letting the horse soak it in. A reward is not doing it again. A reward is something the horse enjoys, a rest, a scratch, a treat, giving them vocal recognition that they did a great job. You may think I am making this up, but they do understand when you do this, and they will try even harder the next time. 
 
Horses try so hard to do the right thing. They are totally willing to work for you, even without a reward, but they will work harder and think more about what they are doing if you give them a good reward. When you scratch them where they can't reach or in their favorite spot when they do something right, you can bet your darnedest they are going to try and do better and do it again, because it means so much to them and finally, they understand that you appreciate their effort. 
 
It takes time for horses to figure out what we want. That’s why you try to show them and then reward the horse's smallest try to let them know they are going in the correct direction. Then over time you ask for more and reward and then ask for more and reward and before you know it, the horse just starts to do it for you because they have figured it out.
 
If you are not making progress, there can be many reasons such as the horse really has no idea what you want. Or the horse tries but you make them do it more and more, so they don't want to try anymore. So, you must figure out what is going wrong, why is he or she not understanding and then the next time you try, and they try at all to do what you’re asking. Stop and make a big fuss, tell them they are the best and you are so proud of them and then give them that scratch and rest. If it’s the first time they get close to what you want, you might want to just quit after the reward and put them away. You just might  be surprised how much better they are,  the next time you ride them. 

By Gaye DeRusso
 
Looking at horse’s teeth to figure out the age can be very intimidating. First because you have to open their mouth and then usually grab their tongue so you can keep it open long enough to  see all those teeth. You need to look at many things, not just one thing to determine their age. So, it is not just a quick look. You need to look at the size, length and angle of the teeth, the shape, Galvayne's Groove, color, cups, stars, and hooks. Then also know that if the horse was stall bound and fed hay, they usually look younger and if grazing on sandy surfaces, they may appear older due to wear. Then make your estimate. This takes some time to do it well, so if see someone just look at the groove and tell you it’s age, know that you need to check yourself to get a better estimate. 
 
It  is a good idea to look at your own  horse's teeth every once in a while, even if you know its age. Sometimes they get things like bark or sticks and even rocks stuck in between their teeth or even in the roof of their mouth. Sometimes the hay will have fox tails in it and those can get stuck in between teeth and their gums. You also want to make sure your horse has a healthy mouth, as they get older, some will get loose teeth, or crack a tooth and some will get a dental disease called EOTRH (Equine Odontoclastic Tooth Resorption and Hypercementosis). It  is a syndrome in older horses resulting in disease and destruction of incisors and canine teeth. The roots of the teeth begin to be resorbed and the body can start to buildup calcified tissue on the roots of the teeth. It is a painful condition, and the horse may need teeth pulled so best to know early on or if you are buying a horse. So, when looking at their teeth also pull up the lips and look above and below the tooth to see the condition of the gums and if they are starting to get EOTRH. 
 
When I look at horses to buy, I always open their mouth and look at their teeth and I can tell you it’s not always pretty in there because some horses have never had their teeth done, some are missing teeth, some have foreign objects in there and some have EOTRH. So best to know what you’re dealing with. 
 
Not all vets are good at aging a horse from teeth. The honest ones will tell you that. There are so many things to look at and consider when aging from the teeth. Shape, length, size, angle, color, wear, galvanized groove, hooks, cups, and stars. So even though we like to think vets are great at it, not all of them are and it’s a skill that needs to be acquired. The more they age horses the better they get, the less they have aged horses,  or  they do not  do it often they will not be as  good. 
 
I did a test to  one vet one year to prove it to my clients. I pulled out the same horse 3 different times he came to look at other horses. He gave me 3 totally different ages and I looked at my clients, like I told you so. 
 
So, if you really need to age  horses it is best to learn yourself and then if needed, find a vet who does it a lot and if you want to test yourself or them, age some horses with papers to see if you and your vet are close to what is true. 
 
Oh, and before I forget Papers!! I can't tell you how many horses I have seen with papers that are not that horse. In fact, I saw one on Facebook headed to Europe and she wanted to ask about the breeding lines. The papers said the horse had a blaze, and the horse was completely black no blaze that she had bought. So, check your papers and make sure they match your horse. If it says socks and your horse has none of course they are not his papers. So just because you’re buying a horse with papers does not mean they are their papers.
 
Ok so let’s just cover some basic simple rules to help guide  you on teeth aging. And you must take them all into account not just one thing. You look at it all and then put the findings together to get the estimate of age. 
 
Most horses will have all their permanent teeth by age 5.
 
It is easy to tell a younger horse's age but gets harder as they get closer to 15. 
 
Horse’s teeth that graze vs being stalled will appear older due to the wear. Horses that graze on grass with sandy ground will wear their teeth flatter.
 
Canine teeth erupt between 4-6 years old but mostly in geldings and stallions, mares rarely have them. So, if no canine teeth, the horse is usually under 6 but if it has canine then it is 4 years or up. 
 
Angle of the teeth
 
Younger horses  have more upright teeth, like our teeth and older horses have more angled teeth like a bird’s beak. So, if teeth are upright, it is usually a young horse, if they are starting to angle then usually about 10-12 and if a lot of angle closer to 20. 
 
Color
 
As horses get older their teeth can get darker and or yellow. So, if the horse’s teeth are angled and yellow closer to 20. 
 
Length
 
Young horses have shorter teeth, older horses will have longer teeth. So long in the tooth as they say means closer to 15 and up.
 
Galvayne's Groove 
 
This is on the outer incisor. It is a dark line that comes down the tooth as the horse ages. Starts at 10, so you will see a small mark. When it's half way down the horse is close to  15. When the line is all the way down the tooth the horse is close to  20. The top of the line disappears at 25, so nothing at top but there will be a line half way down to the bottom. At 30 the line is usually gone or almost gone. Look at both sides of the horses outside incisor as they may not be the same and take an average.
 
Age 10
At top   
                                    
Age 15                                     
Half way down
 
Age 20 
All the way down
 
Age  25
Disappears at top, starts half way down to the  bottom
 
Age 30 
Disappears 
                  
 
Shape
 
The oval to round shape - age of five to nine. Round to triangular shape - age range of 10-15 and triangular to rectangular 16-20 age range.
 
Oval to round - 5-9
 
Round - 10-14
 
Triangle -15
 
Rectangle-20
 
Cups
 
This is on the grinding surface of the tooth and appears as an indented area with a dark center in the middle of each tooth. The cups appear in the permanent teeth, so a horse will have them around age 5 and the cups will disappear as they get older. They disappear from the bottom central incisors at 6, the intermediates at 7  and corners at 8. So, they start to disappear from the lower front teeth, then the teeth right next to those and then the ones more on the sides.
 
The top incisors lose their cups after the bottom teeth. So don't forget to look at the top teeth. So central  top teeth lose the cups at 9, then the top intermediate teeth at 10 and then the corners at 11. So, they disappear from the 2 front upper teeth at 9, then the teeth next to those at 10 and the ones on the side at 11.
 
So, by age 12 or older all the cups are gone and when you open the mouth you will not see any cups, but you will see stars.
 
Stars
This is a yellowish spot that appears more toward the front of the teeth so toward the lips. The stars over time will move  toward the middle of the tooth. They start as a rectangular appearance and then turn round and move toward the middle of the tooth as the horse gets older. It appears in the central (front ) incisors at 8, the intermediates at 9 and corners at 10. 
 
Hook
There’s a hook that can form at the rear of the top corner incisor, which can also help in telling age. It appears around age 7 and disappears around age 9. It will then reappear at age 11 and may stay through the mid-teens.
 
In conclusion remember there are many things to look at not just one. You may have to look at one thing at a time and write it down and then add it all together to get the best estimate of age. Some vets, trainers and owners are great at aging horses and others are not. It is a skill, and it can be a fun skill to acquire.

​Hock Wringing In The Gaited Horse
By Gaye DeRusso
 
Wringing of the hock is a twisting motion in the leg that causes the hock to be pulled outward and looks like it is bowing out, and the foot will twist with weight on the outside of its foot.  It is a common problem in the Tennessee Walking Horse because it was in the older breed lines (foundation stock) and has been passed down from generation to generation. It is especially noticeable when the horse is on soft ground such as sand. 
 
It is best seen from standing behind the  horse and watching it walk away. Look at the hips as the horse walks then scan down to the hocks and watch if they get pulled outward and then watch to see if the foot also twists into the ground. If you have never seen it before it can be quite disturbing to see. Some of the horses have a mild wring and some will be severe. 
 
Although you see it mostly at the hock it is coming from higher up in the leg. If you watch closely, you will see there is rotation coming from the hip into the stifle that then transfers down the leg into the hock and fetlock. Most Tennessee Walking Horse people do not believe it is a conformation defect and many are use to seeing it so it has become the norm to some of those people. 
 
Why would this be bred into them. Well, many are just looking for  gait and not for conformation. So, they bred for the gait and many that wring are consider loose and swingy which they desire, and they can reach way under themselves when their hocks wring. Also due to the movement, many do not step on their front feet and forge. Lastly although it looks so strange, some of these horses are extremely comfortable to ride and surefooted. You would never think it from watching them, but I have ridden many. 
 
In many gaited horse breeds, the Tennessee Walking Horse has been introduced into their breeding lines if they wanted to get more stride, so even if your horse is not a Tennessee Walking Horse, it could have wringing of the hocks that was bred into it. 
 
You will see wringing in more extreme forms in the Padded Performance Show Horses as they are carrying an excessive amount of weight on their hindquarters which causes it to be obvious to see. 
 
Other reasons a horse will wring its hock is an unbalanced hind foot. If the shoer leaves the inside (medial) heel higher than the outside (lateral) side, it can cause the hock to twist outward. So, the inside heel needs to be taken down. If the hock is twisting inwards, then the outside heel needs to be taken down. So, it is very important with horses that twist their hocks to be balanced medial to lateral in their foot and to have a shoe that supports the side of their foot.
 
If the horse is weak or unconditioned this also can cause wringing of the hock and with strength training and conditioning the wringing will improve. If the horse cannot get traction with the foot this can cause the hock twisting, as they cannot dig into the ground to propel themselves further. So, a shoe with traction such as a rim shoe can help, this is why it is also more obvious to see when they are on soft ground. 
 
Other causes can be the horse is neurologic or has a neck or spine problem that causes it to be unbalanced and weak and those will not improve unless you treat what is causing the horse to be weak. 
 
This twisting motion can also be improved with body work and chiropractic visits. If the horse has weak quads and tight adductors it can cause its hocks to wring. So, there is not just one simple way to improve wringing hocks, if you care for your horse, you will want to work on all of it. 
 
Some shoers will want to put caulks or trailers on the shoe to decrease the wringing, but this causes other issues which are worse. Since it will stop the foot and hock from twisting there will be more force put on the horse’s stifle and SI joint. Barefoot in the beginning does not give much traction and therefore they may twist more. If you balance the foot and give more support with a good outside support on the shoe and some traction such as a rim shoe, then rehab the horse, in time you may get him to go barefoot again. But he may need shoes to help him get to that point. 
 
Although some horses have no problems at all due to  the wringing hocks, some will get a sore back, SI issues or hock pain. 
 
But we have horses in their 20's with twisting hocks and now some are getting SI and hock injections to make them more comfortable, but at 20 most horses are getting something to keep them comfortable. 
 
So even though this is disturbing to see if you have not seen it before, know that it was bred into some lines, know that it can be improved with proper balancing of the foot and conditioning of the horse and chiropractic or body work treatments. But keep in mind if your horse did not do this before and it has been in constant work and not weak, but it is starting to wring that it may have a neck or spine issue or a neurologic disease that is causing it and should be evaluated by your vet. 
 
 
 
 

Different Types of Tennessee Walking Horses -WGC vs Heritage Breeding
By Gaye DeRusso
 
Tennessee Walking Horses have changed so much over the years and not exactly for the better in my opinion. What use to be a smooth, athletic, strong, intelligent, willing, and gentle horse has now been bred to some extremes for the padded show ring. They are still great horses, but now you will see some variations within the breed, depending on what they are bred for.
​
Years ago, they were bred for a smooth natural gait, good temperament and to be a good work horse. They called this breeding - Heritage bred. They could work in a harness and plow the fields and take you down the trail or into town. They needed to do it all. When they were no longer used to work on the farms and provide transportation, they began to show them more. As showing became more popular, the breeding began to change.

The TWH in the 1930's and 40's was not the same horse that it became in the 50's. And what was a naturally gaited, surefooted, strong horse became something different when it  was bred for the padded show ring. The previous bloodlines were all but lost except for the few breeders who did not join the movement. 
The bloodlines then became more dominated by the horses bred for the show ring that were pacey, had a very large over stride and not so naturally gaited. Many call them WGC - World Grand Champion bloodlines. 

The ones that are bred to be shown with packages on their feet, are usually on the pacey side. That way when they add that weight or action devices to their foot, they look like they are doing the correct gait of the running walk, but most are step pacing in reality. If you added the action devices to one that just gaits or is on the trotty side, then they usually will not hold the gait and will fox trot or trot. These WGC horses are more lanky, flexible and can have more wringing in their hocks in some of the breeding lines. They tend to have very large over strides, not just a foot but many over stride a couple of feet or more. 

If you are trying to make one of these horses into a trail horse, it’s helpful to know that you really need to ride them. You need to ride them with collection to hold them together and get the best out of them. Because they are more lanky, have a large stride and pacey, if you do not collect them, many will get trippy because they are covering so much ground.  Without the weighted package many keep their feet low to the ground, so they catch on more obstacles. They also are used to arena footing and not trail footing so it can take a year or more for them to figure out how to use their feet and get over obstacles. Their stifles are so loose so they can get that over stride but due to that, their stifles can give out more often if you do not keep the muscles strong around them. 

Those horses if you’re going to ride steep terrain, can have a difficult time going down the steep hills. That large stride makes it very difficult to get under themselves and shorten their stride to get down easier, so many will go down steep hills side ways to make it easier for them.  They also tend to slide their feet more which can cause them to slip more often on mud, roads, and granite. So, they are not as surefooted since they were bred for the show ring and not for trail. They  reach out so far with their front legs and therefore they cover so much ground with one step that they  need to clear more obstacles. This makes it more difficult for the horse when there are tree roots, rocks etc. on the trail. A horse with a shorter stride is usually more surefooted. 

When riding these types of horses, you have to stay alert to the footing you are riding on. Keep the horse paying attention to where it is putting its feet. Keep more contact so you can ride with semi collection and help the horse to shorten its stride to get down the trail safely. Think of riding the horse with more engagement and getting it to drive with its backend and lighten its front end. This will help it to stay more surefooted on the trail. 

Some of these horses are very calm so you need to keep giving them little jobs, so they pay attention. Because they are lanky and flexible, if you do not hold them together, they can feel wobbly especially if they are pacey. So, the more you help them to stay straight and stiffer with their body, the more comfortable the ride. If you ride them with little contact, they tend to wobble down the trail and you get a lot of motion in the saddle. These are the horses that tend to have that camel walk when they are going slow and that is not a very comfortable walk. 

Due to the horse being on the pacey side and being lanky and flexible these horses will look very weird to most people and most people think they are lame if they are not ridden correctly. They can  look spastic when running loose and usually cannot hold a canter very well when running loose, they tend to fall into a pace or cross canter. 

They can be very heavy on their front end, due to their conformation, some have a deep narrow chest, longer neck, and larger head. All of this can make them heavy in the front end, so easier to trip and fall if not ridden in a balanced frame. 

The ones bred for the show ring but for a lighter shoe, tend to not be as pacey. They may even just gait or trot some when loose. They will have over stride but usually not as much and although they can be lanky and flexible its usually not as extreme. These horses also do well ride in semi collection but will be able to have more self-carriage. So, you will even see some slack in the rein in the show ring. They may have a longer toe and a heavier shoe on but when they are taken down to a natural foot it is not as extreme, so it is easier for the horse to adjust.

Many of these riders will show but also trail ride, so these horses usually have a better conversion over to trails. Since they are not as pacey, less overstride, they are usually more surefooted and less trippy. They still can have looser stifles which may give at times, so a strengthening program also helps. They can get down the steeper hills easier but still may have some issues with super steep. They still slide their feet some so they can slide in mud, roads, and on granite.

Now the Tennessee Walking Horses bred back in the 1930 and 40's were the most versatile Tennessee Walking Horses. As they were bred to do everything, ride the plantations up to 30 miles per day, ride for transportation, ride down the trail, plow the fields, pull a wagon, herd the cows, and teach the kids to ride. You need a well-bred horse to do all those things. Ones that are gentle, stockier, strong, athletic, not spooky, well gaited, surefooted, good conformation, even cowy, that had great temperaments, stamina, and endurance. These are the Tennessee Walking Horses called Heritage bred and one breeder that was in Alabama has them named after him and that is  McCurdy Plantation Horse. 

These are Walking Horses that look more like normal horses. They have good conformation, straight legs, over stride but not very large and a natural gait. So, if you have one of these and you keep hearing about  other  people’s walkers  that are  pacey and trippy, you now know why, because they have a different type of walker then you do. You have Heritage and they most likely have WGC bred.

If they would just go  back to  breeding more of these types of walkers, then people would have a lot less trail problems. You still have to ride them correctly to get the best gait but  horses that  are bred  well for the trail,  make better trail horses. Also, if they grow up, running in the fields  up and down hills, they become more surefooted on their  own. They figure out how to move over the terrain to  stay balanced. When horses are used for multiple jobs like they did in the old days, they become very tolerant and versatile and adjust so much easier to any job asked of them.

You can't expect a horse that is bred for the arena, never gets to run loose on different types of terrain and hills or that never goes out on trail to be good climbing over logs and going up and down steep hills. It can get better in time with training and experience, but it has to learn how to do those things. And due to how it is bred, some horses will never be a great surefooted trail horse because it was bred to be a padded show horse. 

This is why so many Tennessee Walking Horses are now so misunderstood by vets, and their riders. Because we have bred them into something else. Something that  does not do as well on the trail. Don't get me wrong these still are my favorite horses because even the ones not  bred so well for the trail  are the sweetest horses and try so hard, but some are just not able to be great on the trail unless you are riding them every moment to help them.

So don't pass over the walking horse when looking for a great trail horse because they are not all the same. But do your homework and if your riding steep or difficult trails, look for ones bred for that purpose. One that are stockier, thick strong bone, athletic, not a huge overstride, gait when loose and have ridden steep terrain, because then they are not only built to do the job well, but they have already done the job you need them to do. Look for ones that are Heritage Bred not ones bred for the show ring if you are trail rider and want to have a more versatile walking horse.

For more information on the Heritage Bred Walking Horses, go to this link. http://www.ihwha.com/gaits.html and https://mccurdyhorses.com
 

​Rocky Mountain Horse 
By Gaye DeRusso 
 
The Rocky Mountain Horse seems to be one of the most popular gaited horses at this time and one of the most expensive. Everyone loves their calm temperament, color, and shorter stride. But if you are getting one there are some things to know. 
 
Some have a natural smooth gait. Others are on the trotty or pacey side and some both trot and pace. This can make gaiting them more difficult. If you bought one that was trained well, even if it trots or paces when loose,  it should know the basics of arena and trail riding and gait well. If you bought one that was not trained well or had an owner that did not know how to gait it, you may be taking on somewhat of a project. It maybe young or old and still be a project due to the previous trainers or owners. Some of the trotty ones are not as smooth and  have more wiggle in the saddle when you ride their gait, so always best to gait them and make sure it is what you are looking for. 
 
The more you educate yourself, the more you will be able to pick the right one for you, or  to help the one you have, if you already bought a Rocky. 
 
Let’s start with gait. If it just gaits all the time when loose, it will be pretty easy to gait under saddle you just need to go the right speed. You should make sure the horse will do a slow trail walk, then also do a faster gait like a flat walk or slow rocky gait and then a faster rocky gait (saddle gait) and canter, if you want to canter. Many that just gait, can be harder to get to canter, because their gait is lateral, and the canter is diagonal, so just matters if the canter is important to you, you want to know how hard it will be to get. When they do their rocky gait, their head will be still, you should feel a side-to-side wiggle in the saddle, or it will be smooth, and the horse's tail will bounce up and down. 
 
If the horse just trots when loose, when you go to gait, it will most likely fall toward the trotty side of the gaited spectrum and go into a fox trot. The fox trot is a diagonal gait. You will feel a soft up and down in the saddle, the horses head will shake up and down and their tail usually waves like a flag. The fox trot is a nice gait but if you want them to do their rocky gait, you will have to help them. You will have to invert their back to get them to go lateral toward the rocky gait. You may have to bring their head up to your chest level to tense up their neck and if it still trots then try turning their head sideways as this also helps them to go lateral. If you ride with their back round and their head down, they will just fox trot or trot. 
 
You need to ride them in the correct frame to help them get that rocky gait and that's an inverted frame.  You need to take them being diagonal to lateral and that is not an easy task. Over time you can bring their head lower and relax their back some, but they may always need some inversion to do their best rocky gait. The good news is the trotty ones canter pretty easy.
 
If the horse just paces when loose, then it is already lateral, but too lateral, so you will need to try and get the horse framed up with their head down and a round back. That might be enough but if you feel a soft bounce then you now have a step pace, and you need to do some lateral movements such as circles, leg yield, shoulder, or hindquarters in to get them from the step pace to the rocky gait. Also make sure they are relaxing their back when you bring their head down, not just putting their head down with a tense back. A pacey horse will be harder to get into the canter, so if you want to canter, make sure you test the horse when you ride it to see how difficult it may be. 
 
Now depending on where you are riding, the terrain will affect the horse’s gait, so going up and down hills and going in different terrain can cause that horse to go from lateral to diagonal or diagonal to lateral. So, you have to understand that up hills make them trotty, down hills make them pacey, hard footing can make them pacey and deep footing can make them trotty and then you need to adjust the horse to keep them in gait. 
 
Wonder why they show their gait on the hard road, because they don't have to adjust the horse much to keep it in the same gait and speed. But once you get that horse home, you need to have a clue of how to ride it. 
 
Now let’s talk about age. The Rockies are so calm that many are sold to beginners or people getting back into horses and many older riders tend to buy them. But just because they are calm, does not mean they won't do anything bad. They are still young, so you need to know how to deal with a young horse. Make sure it is prepared for the job you want it to do, make sure you do ground work and get it to respect you and have a trainer nearby that is willing to help you. So many get these young Rockies and just want to walk slow, then the horse blows up for what they think is no reason. But there is a reason, it is young, it is not getting its energy out or using its brain and then something happens, and the horse just reacts. This is not a bad horse; this is just a young horse. 
 
These horses can also have eye problems such as MCOA- Multiple congenital ocular anomalies, it is associated with the gene responsible for the silver dappling, which you can read about, but if you’re buying one, have its eyes checked so you know and you can have it checked for the gene. Rockies  can have stifle issues which many gaited horses can, so make sure to keep them conditioned and do a stifle strengthening program. 
 
They tend to be easy keepers, so if you do not exercise them enough or over feed them, they can become insulin resistant. So be very careful with their weight and if you’re not riding much, feed less not more or get a hay net or grazing muzzle to slow their eating down. 
 
Rockies are great horses, but you should educate yourself and make sure they are the right breed for you and that you pick the right one for your skill level and get an age and temperament you can deal with. Not all are calm, and some have been ridden so fast, they are too fast for the new owner. So, test the horse well, ride it several times, work with the seller to learn how to ride it and get support from a trainer if you are new, just gettting back into horses or it is a young horse. 
 
But just like all the gaited breeds, Rockies are great horses. 

​The Perfect Horse
By Gaye DeRusso
 
I have people contact me all the time looking for the perfect horse. Some of them take years looking for this horse. Some even go so far as to breed the horse or to buy a yearling. But even those horses will never be perfect. You might not like it's personality or it's gait once it is mature. 
 
By having this idea in your head that there is the perfect horse, you miss out on a lot of great horses, and you also lose precious time. We only have so much time on this earth, so wasting years in a search is a very sad thing. 
 
I have seen some search for years and by the time they found what they thought was the  perfect horse, they can no longer had time to ride or could not ride because of medical reasons, or their finances changed, and they kept the horse for a year and then sold it. All those years they spent searching, they could have been riding instead. 
 
If I had a horse that was close to what they were looking for, it was the wrong color, wrong breed, wrong sex, the wrong height, or the wrong age. Something was always wrong. I finally learned not to help these people and just to move on, because I could never get them what they wanted. They not only wasted my time and other seller’s times, but they wasted their own precious time with that search. 
 
There is no perfect horse. Every horse like every person will have good things and bad things about them. That is just the way life is, so you have to choose what works best for you and then work with the horse to make it into what you want, but never forget, no horse will be perfect.
 
If you want calm, never spooks, super safe, anyone can ride, that is usually a dull, lazy horse. It may not gait the best, and you may have to help it to gait. But it may gait very nicely if you just put in some effort.
 
It doesn't spook because it doesn't care about anything, even where it is going, so it may be trippy and not be surefooted. You may have to wear spurs because it is dull or carry a stick and  it may not be fast enough to keep up with your friends.
 
If it gaits perfectly then it may have something else wrong like it is  a spooky horse. It never goes out of gait but doesn't want to go down the road alone. Never wants to lead the ride or the opposite, may be bold and too fast, out of control in groups.
 
Maybe it is the most beautiful horse you have ever seen, but without consistent work it turns into a nut or becomes stubborn and won't leave the barn. Or it comes up with an injury or medical issue. 
 
Time is precious. I am not saying to not have a wish list but be realistic in what you are looking for. Your list should not have 20 things on it. It should have more like 6 things, temperament, trainability, experience, gait, gelding or mare and sound enough for the job you want it to do. 
 
I can tell you some of the most famous horses in the world were horses, that other people over looked. Ones that were found by accident or was all they could afford. But the owners put all they had into making it a great horse, that's why I love the story of Harry and The Snowman. That horse made him famous and was an old plow horse going to the glue factory yet he became a Grand Prix Horse. 
 
All the horses I have kept for personal horses, have been ones, that were not good sale horses or one’s people kept passing on. All my horses have been great horses. I never picked a color or height. I just let the universe decide what I should have. The one horse taught me everything about behavior issues and gaiting because he was all I could afford and due to him, I became a gaited trainer. The next one did all the expos and demos with me and gave so many lessons. He really was a great work horse for me and now is a great trail horse for a client. Now I have 2 more and they also have taught me many things and helped my business as well as provide hours and hours of fun on the trail. 
 
Sometimes you just have to get out of your own brain of all your wants and just get a good horse, then make it great. Otherwise, you may lose all that precious time, that could have been wonderful. Everyone has dreams of what they want, but those that make them come true, don't spend time dreaming, they spend time making the dream into a reality. 

​The Well-Traveled Horse
By Gaye DeRusso
 
Buying horses can be a difficult task. One thing, I like to look for when buying a horse, is how much has it traveled? 
 
Why? Because a horse that is well traveled will adjust easier to its new home. It will more then likely trailer well alone and with other horses. They are used to getting on and off the trailer and when they get off, they are in a different place. Just like people who travel all the time, they are use to it and therefore, do not stress out. They arrive and just settle into their new atmosphere so much easier.
 
The horse that has been at the same ranch or the same boarding stable for most its life with the same horses, worries me. Especially if they were always ridden off the property to trails and never trailered anywhere else. Horses get use to what they do all the time, so if they are with the same horse all its life, or the same trails, it will usually be pretty mellow there because it is use to it. But taking a horse that has lived and been ridden in the same place for 16 years and bringing it to a new home with different horses will be a stressful situation for that horse. It is not used to traveling and it is not used to being without those certain friends, so it has a higher chance of going through a lot of stress for several months or a year before it settles in and is comfortable. 
 
So, it probably won't act  as calm  as it was when you tried it, in fact you may think they drugged it because it is so different. But it wasn't drugs it was just that it was comfortable in the situation that it had been in all those years. So, pulling it away from its only friends and driving it far away, when it is not used to trailering, will cause so much stress that it may get ulcers, not eat and even colic. 
 
I like to take the horses I am selling and travel with them. I take them to new places, let them meet new horses and let them stay over in different places. This way they get use to traveling and use to just settling in. They don't need that one buddy because they have many new buddies to be with. It causes a lot less stress and the horses adjust pretty easily to their new home. 
 
If you plan to travel with your horse, then, if possible, get one that has done a fair amount of traveling with its previous owner. But if you buy a horse that has been at the same place for 14 years, never trailered out, then the adjustment to the new facility may take a long time, months to a year. In the meantime, they may scream, run around frantic and be completely stressed out. Also,  it may not trailer very well, or load or unload easily. This is normal for a horse that has not traveled much. Of course you can teach it to travel it just takes time, patience and repetition. 
 
So if you want to make it easier on you and the horse, know what you plan on doing with the horse and try and get one that has done that job before. 

The Starter Horse
By Gaye DeRusso
 
If I could get anyone to listen to me when they are just getting back into horses or they are a beginner, I would recommend that everyone get a starter horse. A starter horse is a kind, calm, older, experienced horse that is very forgiving of all your mistakes. They have arthritis so less likely to buck or rear or even to spook. They don't get mad when you pull too much or give the wrong cues or lose your balance and if you don't know what to do, they take care of you. These horses are older about 18 years and up, even a 25-year-old can be a great starter horse. 
​
By getting a starter horse, you get to learn. And if you make mistakes, it is usually not a big deal, because the starter horse knows what it needs to do, even if you don't. But most people do not want a starter horse. When they come to look at my horses, I usually have an older one for sale and when I see how they move and what they know or they tell me they haven't ridden for years, that’s the horse I tell them should buy. They kindly thank me and say no thanks, I do not want one that is old. Every time someone comes who cannot ride this is the horse I recommend and over and over they pass on him or her. Because it’s not their dream horse. 

The whole point of a starter horse is to get started. To get started and to learn how to be a good horseman and how to be a good rider. Because both those things take  some years to get accomplished and it’s much easier to do those things on an easy horse. Having a horse that does not know what to do and a rider who does not know what to do, can be a dangerous match. They can't save you when you need help, and you can't save them, when they need help, cause neither one knows what to do yet. So, it’s best to have an experienced calm well-mannered older horse with an inexperienced rider and have an experienced rider with the inexperienced horse, those are matches that do well. 

The starter horse is the smartest way to go and once you are better and have great horsemanship and riding skills, then buy the dream horse that you want. You will have so many more choices if you actually learn how to ride well first, then being a beginner or timid or inexperienced rider looking for that dream horse. 

When I tell people this, they tell me that they will then be stuck with the older horse, paying for its care and its board. And I think yes you should because it saved you so much money and kept you from becoming fearful and having accidents, you should pay for it.  It will still be cheaper than doing it their way and getting hurt or losing confidence or not wanting to ever get on a horse again. 
Retirement care is not as much as regular board since you only need pasture, or a paddock and you do not need an arena since you are  not riding them anymore. But you could use them as a guest  horse or a lesson horse or therapy horse if they are still able to do some work or they could be someone else’s starter horse. 

When I worked at a lesson stable, none of the students knew how old our horses were. Most were pretty old. Because the older ones usually are more forgiving. But we had one that was pretty darn old, probably close to 30, none of us knew because he had been around so long. We could put anyone on him and just leave them to practice. We knew they would be safe even if they had no idea what to do. His name was Louie, and he would never go faster than a slow trot because he wasn't able to anymore. He taught so many adults and children how to ride and no one ever fell off. 
Louie did camps and shows, but all at a walk or slow trot. And he took great care of everyone. Even though he was old, he was very happy to keep working and be useful. Louie was the best starter horse. 

Starter horses are also cheaper and although they made need some maintenance to keep them serviceably sound, it is still cheaper than a hospital bill or you having to miss work because you got injured. 

So, although you are looking for your dream horse, if you do not ride well, or are getting back into horses or you do not have much experience, or have poor balance, or make poor decisions, then you would be much better off with a starter horse. And in time you might find that starter horse is your dream horse, you just were just looking at horses the wrong way. 

Each Gaited Horse's Gait, Can Look Different
By Gaye DeRusso
​
If you weren't confused before, here's more confusion. Did you know that even if the horses are the same breed and doing the same gait, that it can look different. Yes, that's right, because each horse moves a little differently. 

They may have a longer or shorter stride, they have different conformation which affects how their legs move, so they may pick up their front legs higher or keep them lower to the ground, they may pick up their back feet higher or slide them above the ground,  if they are built upright, they may have a higher head carriage, if they are built downhill they may have a lower head carriage, if they have a long back or a short back the gait will look different, if they use their shoulders more, they may have more head shake in certain gaits, if they have more hock action their tail may bounce up and down more, if they are trotty their legs will look more separated and if they are pacey their legs will look closer together. 
​
So, when looking at gait you have to consider how that individual horse moves. A horse on the pacey side will never have the separation of legs like a horse on the trotty side unless you teach it to trot. If you have a horse doing a saddle gait and it’s on the trotty side, at moments it may look more like a fox trot even though it is not. If you have a horse on the pacey side, their fox trot may look more like a saddle gait at times. 
It can be so confusing when you are staring and analyzing what they are doing, or when you are riding and trying to feel what they are doing under neath you. Just know you are not alone; it is confusing for most people. You just try and make the gait the best, but understand why your horse looks different then your friends horse doing the same gait. 

Realize if they are covering more ground, their horse may have a larger stride. If it smoother it may have less action in its legs or come down in its pasterns more, if it trips more it may keep its legs closer to the ground, if it heavy on the front end it may be built downhill, if it is lighter in the front end, it may be built uphill. If it does not have a lot of head shake it may not use its shoulders as well, it doesn't have much tail bounce then it does not have as much hock action. And some horses are just more athletic than others and some just try harder. So much goes into what it looks like. 
​
Just realize you can make your horse so much better, but you cannot make it into something it is not. So, understanding that gaited horses look and feel different doing the same gait, will save you a lot of frustration and help you to  be more realistic in your gaited goals!