Missouri Fox Trotter
 
The Missouri Fox Trotter is a horse breed from the state of Missouri in the United States. It was developed in the Ozark Mountains by settlers in the early 19th century, and quickly developed into a gaited  breed appreciated for its stock horse abilities, stamina and smooth gaits. It performs an ambling gait known as the "fox trot", a four-beat broken diagonal gait in which the front foot of the diagonal pair lands before the hind, eliminating the moment of suspension and increasing smoothness. The main breed registry was begun in 1948 and as of 2012 registers almost 100,000 horses.  The Missouri Fox Trotter was developed from equine stock, including gaited horses, brought to Missouri by settlers from Tennessee, Kentucky and Virginia. Breeds that contributed to the Fox Trotter included the Arabian, Morgan, American Saddlebred, Tennessee Walking Horse and Standardbred.
 
The Missouri Fox Trotter performs an ambling gait known as the "fox trot", which replaces the trot seen in many other breeds. The fox trot is a four-beat broken diagonal gait in which the front foot of the diagonal pair lands before the hind, eliminating the moment of suspension and giving a smooth, sure-footed ride. The gait is sometimes described as having the horse walk with the front feet and trot with the back. In a fox trot, the horse must keep one front foot on the ground at all times and display a sliding motion with the hind legs.[1] The fox trot and the regular trot are both at a speed between a walk and a canter or gallop; ambling gaits are four-beat gaits, whereas the trot is a two-beat gait. The extra footfalls provide additional smoothness to a rider because the horse always has at least one foot on the ground. This minimizes movement of the horse's topline and removes the bounce of a two-beat gait, caused by a moment of suspension followed by the jolt of two feet hitting the ground as the horse shifts from one pair of legs to the other.[4] The value of an intermediate speed is that the horse conserves energy.[5] More than thirty horse breeds are "gaited," able to perform a four-beat ambling gait; some can also trot.[4] A Missouri Fox Trotter, with rider, can maintain a speed of 5 to 8 miles per hour (8.0 to 13 km/h) while using the fox trot, and can cover short distances at up to 10 miles per hour (16 km/h).[6] In comparison, the average medium trot speed is 6 to 8 miles per hour 

Fox Trotters are usually on the calmer side, they are surefooted due to their shorter stride. They are usually slower uphill compared to the walking horses, but faster downhill.

Although bred to do a fox trot, due to their high demand, some have not been bred or trained well. These horses may pace, trot, step pace or even do a running walk. I have seen many clients tell me their horse is fox trotting when it is doing a stepping pace.

So when looking to buy one, make sure it has a calm temperament and the gait you are looking for.