Western Riders and Gaited Horses
By Gaye DeRusso
Of all the riders I have taught to ride gaited horses, the western riders seem to have the toughest time. They want to ride the gaited horse like a quarter horse, on a loose rein with its head down. Many are use to kicking the horses to make them go. The more they kick the faster the horse will go. This just does not work well with most gaited horses.
Each discipline of riding has certain breeds of horses best for those disciplines. Here I will list a few. Jumping has Warmbloods and Thoroughbreds, reining and cutting has Quarter horses, endurance has Arabs, dressage has Warmbloods, the harness track has Standardbreds, the flat track has Thoroughbreds, vaulting has Draft horses, combined driving has Draft horses.
But trail riding can be done with any breed of horse.
The problem here is that most riders know if you use a certain breed for trail riding you should ride it in a way to help it to perform its best, but some people just do not want to ride the horse the way it should be ridden. They want to ride the horse the way they were taught in their own discipline either an English discipline or Western Discipline.
You don't see most endurance races start with people riding on big loose reins because they would lose control very fast with all those horses taking off at the same time. The same with race horses, they are ridden on shorter reins for control and so they can adjust the horse very fast to steer around other horses or slow down or speed up. The dressage riders performing those difficult moves are also on a short rein. The carriage horses and vaulting horses also have contact from the drivers and are not performing with their heads down low. But the western riders seem to get stuck when converting to another breed other than the Quarter Horse or Paint and choose over and over again to ride on that big loose rein.
So, what am I getting out. It just does not work well with the gaited horse. If you are going to get a gaited horse, then you need to know right from the beginning that they do not gait that well on a long loose rein. They are not quarter horses, and they will never be quarter horses. You need to ride them to help them gait well and to be safe on the trail.
The reason they need a shorter rein with contact, is so you can adjust them quickly while they are gaiting, to stay in their gait. They have so many different speeds and gaits that they can do, if you do not show them what to do, they will just switch their speed and gaits all over the place.
Many ridden on a loose rein, become lazy and trippy. They get bored and drag their feet and start to look all over the place and pay no attention to what they are doing.
They are not stiff like a quarter horse, they are very flexible and that's why it is easy for them to look one way but be walking the other way when on a loose rein. Since they are not paying any attention, they can trip and fall down.
They have longer strides then most quarter horses and do not pick their feet up as high as a quarter horse. So, they cover more ground full of things to trip on like rocks, and since they do not pick their feet up as high, they can trip. That's why they need to pay attention and most do not, when on a loose floppy rein.
They have so many things they can do with their feet, when they do trip, some can't figure out what to do with their feet and by that time, they have landed on their knees.
This does not mean you have to ride on tight reins, this just means they need to have some contact and if you loosen up on the rein, still keep it short enough that you can adjust them quickly.
Now you will see many sales people riding them slower on a loose rein. This is because they want to sell you the horse and they know this is what you want to do on the trail. They don't care, they just want to sell the horse and make money. They just edit out if the horse trips or doesn't gait well.
Just know if you want to get a gaited horse to perform its best, then you will need a shorter rein and you will need to learn how to use your calf and heel to make the horse go instead of kicking it also. If you kick, many will skip over gaits. So, you are trying to adjust the horse gradually to get the best gait.
It seems common sense, to ride the horse like you see the show people ride them, since they are trying to get the horse to perform its best. So watch some shows and see how short their reins are.
Certain disciplines have short reins and certain disciplines have long reins. But even in western you will see the barrel horses have shorter reins, because they are moving fast and need to maneuver around the barrels. So, if you have been riding your gaited horse on a loose floppy rein and having issues, the first thing to correct, is your rein length and how you use your legs. You will be surprised of what a difference it will make.
Of course, at times, you let your horse put its head down and stretch and give it breaks, but when gaiting, keep some contact. On difficult terrain, keep some contact and when speeding up, ask them gradually.
Think of it as going from an automatic car to a standard car, there are more gears, and you have to make more adjustments, so you have to get the message to the horse quickly or they will just do what is easiest for them but not be best for you.
If you're not willing to ride them with some contact and you want your horse to ride with his head low to the ground, then my suggestion is to get a nice quarter horse with a smooth gait and not go gaited. You will be much happier, and less frustrated. Gaited horses were not bred to go with their heads low like quarter horses and quarter horses were not bred to be ridden like gaited horses. Realize all horses are great, but also realize they are all different and need to be ridden with what works best for them and safest for the rider.
If your not sure how much contact to ride with then this video may help, but each horse is different.
Gaited Books
Easy Gaited Horses By Lee Ziegler https://amzn.to/3vFuk8w
The Gaited Horse Bible by Brenda Imus https://amzn.to/3It0Imf
Gaits of Gold by Brenda Imus https://amzn.to/3jGXam0
Heavenly Gaits By Brenda Imus https://amzn.to/3ieKGBP
Training the Gaited Horse By Gary Lane https://amzn.to/3jPcAVq
DISCLAIMER: This description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission if you buy something. This helps support the website. Thank you for the support!
By Gaye DeRusso
Of all the riders I have taught to ride gaited horses, the western riders seem to have the toughest time. They want to ride the gaited horse like a quarter horse, on a loose rein with its head down. Many are use to kicking the horses to make them go. The more they kick the faster the horse will go. This just does not work well with most gaited horses.
Each discipline of riding has certain breeds of horses best for those disciplines. Here I will list a few. Jumping has Warmbloods and Thoroughbreds, reining and cutting has Quarter horses, endurance has Arabs, dressage has Warmbloods, the harness track has Standardbreds, the flat track has Thoroughbreds, vaulting has Draft horses, combined driving has Draft horses.
But trail riding can be done with any breed of horse.
The problem here is that most riders know if you use a certain breed for trail riding you should ride it in a way to help it to perform its best, but some people just do not want to ride the horse the way it should be ridden. They want to ride the horse the way they were taught in their own discipline either an English discipline or Western Discipline.
You don't see most endurance races start with people riding on big loose reins because they would lose control very fast with all those horses taking off at the same time. The same with race horses, they are ridden on shorter reins for control and so they can adjust the horse very fast to steer around other horses or slow down or speed up. The dressage riders performing those difficult moves are also on a short rein. The carriage horses and vaulting horses also have contact from the drivers and are not performing with their heads down low. But the western riders seem to get stuck when converting to another breed other than the Quarter Horse or Paint and choose over and over again to ride on that big loose rein.
So, what am I getting out. It just does not work well with the gaited horse. If you are going to get a gaited horse, then you need to know right from the beginning that they do not gait that well on a long loose rein. They are not quarter horses, and they will never be quarter horses. You need to ride them to help them gait well and to be safe on the trail.
The reason they need a shorter rein with contact, is so you can adjust them quickly while they are gaiting, to stay in their gait. They have so many different speeds and gaits that they can do, if you do not show them what to do, they will just switch their speed and gaits all over the place.
Many ridden on a loose rein, become lazy and trippy. They get bored and drag their feet and start to look all over the place and pay no attention to what they are doing.
They are not stiff like a quarter horse, they are very flexible and that's why it is easy for them to look one way but be walking the other way when on a loose rein. Since they are not paying any attention, they can trip and fall down.
They have longer strides then most quarter horses and do not pick their feet up as high as a quarter horse. So, they cover more ground full of things to trip on like rocks, and since they do not pick their feet up as high, they can trip. That's why they need to pay attention and most do not, when on a loose floppy rein.
They have so many things they can do with their feet, when they do trip, some can't figure out what to do with their feet and by that time, they have landed on their knees.
This does not mean you have to ride on tight reins, this just means they need to have some contact and if you loosen up on the rein, still keep it short enough that you can adjust them quickly.
Now you will see many sales people riding them slower on a loose rein. This is because they want to sell you the horse and they know this is what you want to do on the trail. They don't care, they just want to sell the horse and make money. They just edit out if the horse trips or doesn't gait well.
Just know if you want to get a gaited horse to perform its best, then you will need a shorter rein and you will need to learn how to use your calf and heel to make the horse go instead of kicking it also. If you kick, many will skip over gaits. So, you are trying to adjust the horse gradually to get the best gait.
It seems common sense, to ride the horse like you see the show people ride them, since they are trying to get the horse to perform its best. So watch some shows and see how short their reins are.
Certain disciplines have short reins and certain disciplines have long reins. But even in western you will see the barrel horses have shorter reins, because they are moving fast and need to maneuver around the barrels. So, if you have been riding your gaited horse on a loose floppy rein and having issues, the first thing to correct, is your rein length and how you use your legs. You will be surprised of what a difference it will make.
Of course, at times, you let your horse put its head down and stretch and give it breaks, but when gaiting, keep some contact. On difficult terrain, keep some contact and when speeding up, ask them gradually.
Think of it as going from an automatic car to a standard car, there are more gears, and you have to make more adjustments, so you have to get the message to the horse quickly or they will just do what is easiest for them but not be best for you.
If you're not willing to ride them with some contact and you want your horse to ride with his head low to the ground, then my suggestion is to get a nice quarter horse with a smooth gait and not go gaited. You will be much happier, and less frustrated. Gaited horses were not bred to go with their heads low like quarter horses and quarter horses were not bred to be ridden like gaited horses. Realize all horses are great, but also realize they are all different and need to be ridden with what works best for them and safest for the rider.
If your not sure how much contact to ride with then this video may help, but each horse is different.
Gaited Books
Easy Gaited Horses By Lee Ziegler https://amzn.to/3vFuk8w
The Gaited Horse Bible by Brenda Imus https://amzn.to/3It0Imf
Gaits of Gold by Brenda Imus https://amzn.to/3jGXam0
Heavenly Gaits By Brenda Imus https://amzn.to/3ieKGBP
Training the Gaited Horse By Gary Lane https://amzn.to/3jPcAVq
DISCLAIMER: This description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission if you buy something. This helps support the website. Thank you for the support!