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
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