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What gait is this?

6K views 39 replies 15 participants last post by  AlmagroN 
#1 ·
Im trying to figure out what gate this TWH is doing? This is Midnights Mystery Man when we first got him. Its when we test rode him...any input?



 
#3 ·
It is a gait I know that. Firstly it wasnt bouncy and second(ly) In order for it to be a trot though there would have to be a moment of complete suspension where the horse has no feet on the ground and i slowed it down on my comp and there is always at least one foot on the ground so i know its not a trot. But thanks. Also we have had him for 8 months now and he still moves the same way. We also had the vet go out and check him that same day and didnt mention anything about any soreness in him. He also just had a vet visit 2 months ago and again no stiffness or soreness.
 
#7 ·
It's definetly not pace, he moves his legs more diagonal than lateral.

It's a trot, but not a clean/pure trot.
Either it's gaited/non-gaited parents, or he has some tension or ''lock'' in some muscle, could be a ''pain-memory'' (the memory of a painful injury) or he just hasn't gotten the hang of it. I know horses that mixes between a trot and a canter, normally once stressed out, over worked and tensed non-gaited horses, they've forgotten both trot and canter and just mixes, even years after they got better lives with less stress and good people.. Could be the same but with trot and gait on this one.

However, if you're not showing or by other means need a pure, specific gait, and if he's calm and gaits with a lifted back and so on, I wouldn't worry. As long as he doesn't seem tensed or annoyed or anything, it could just be his regular gait.
 
#8 ·
I dont have a video of it yet but he also does the (quick) running walk and does that just like a regular TWH do u think there is any way to get that gait done any better also would like to add that he tripped in the video (about 3-6 seconds into it) and his feet were due to be trimmed. Ill try to get a video of him in his running walk. Although I dont ride him anymore, I just test rode him. He is my boyfriends horse. Thanks for all the input though
 
#10 ·
Do you want that gait then? I mean, if he's doing the running walk, that's pure gait. This is closer to trot, so any way to get this ''better'' is to make it a pure trot. Which I, of course, say is healthy for any horse since it helps getting them soft, but I think most TWH people disagree there ;)
To get a pre trot, work him on rough ground, it's hard to gait there. Or just skip that gait and stick with his clean gaits.
 
#11 ·
To me it looks like a fast walk, because when the horse slows down, it is just walking. And with the trot, all 4 feet are off the ground at once at one point, and that horse has at least one foot on the ground at all times....
 
#12 ·
It's a non-pure/broken trot. If you look at the legs, they move almost in pairs diagonally. When gaiting, they should move less in pairs and laterally. Looks like a lazy and broken trot.
 
#14 ·
I did some more research on what you guys are calling a "broken trot" and I realized what you are talking about here is what i found the link to the site is included. Its ALSO known as a foxtrot like i had previously asked but this is a win win situation lol u guys are right and so am I (and dont have to worry about it being an actual TROT lol)


Encyclopedia > Fox trot
This article is about a horse's gait. See Foxtrot (disambiguation) for other meanings. Binomial name Equus caballus The Horse (Equus caballus) is a sizeable ungulate mammal, one of the seven modern species of the genus Equus. ... A gait can refer to: a particular way or manner of moving on foot: walking and running are the two basic human gaits; see also gait analysis and Gait (human). ... Foxtrot refers to: Foxtrot, a dance and music. ...
Fox trot or foxtrot is a gait of a horse. It may be described as broken diagonal gait (broken trot). In this gait, a front hoof hits the ground a split second earlier than the opposite rear hoof, then a pause, then the same for the other diagonal pair of hoofs. This produces a distinctive sound, sometimes memorized by the phrase "a chunk ... of meat". This kind of gait is less joggy compared to the square trot.
 
#15 ·
Then whoever said Crow was foxtrottingweas wrong :P or. well, me might very well be foxtrotting too, what do I know. xD
I thought a foxtrot was more even 4 beat than that, but I wouldn't know :)
 
#16 ·
it's a running walk. He started off wanting to break into a faster gait and slowed himself down. I couldnt decide if he was a little gimpy but I think that's from the gravel or uneven ground. Probably his first speed after walk, they can usually go 2 or 3 speeds even w/out the "proper" training.
 
#20 ·
i have 2 TWH's... it's a running walk. I don't knwo what ya'all call it, but that's what I call it....
 
#22 ·
It's a running walk...no doubt....been doing this for a long time! Not the prettiest running walk I've ever seen, but he will get better at it over time, as will you as the rider, knowing his cues to bump him down into it when he tries to go faster. It looked like that is what happened...he was trying to speed up and as the rider you didn't want him to so you slowed him down too much.
 
#23 ·
^ Yes, that sounds promising.. He looked a little tender-foot actually. And the trip.. Need longer video.
 
#24 ·
Oh, how I wish the clip was a just a little bit longer. That's a stepping pace, as far as I can tell. He's definitely not trotting - it's a broken step, not 2 beat. Pacing is really obvious with both legs moving in the same direction on the same side, like someone paddling a canoe - not pacing. He's not fox trotting and he is not doing a true rack, which is more diagonal/squared up. But he is almost doing a rack, the difference being he is still too lateral in his movements, which is how you get the stepping pace. Squaring him up, by regulating his footfalls, working some poles, or in sand/deeper footing, if possible, will help you help him square up. Stepping pace isn't as undesirable as pacing, but it is not an ideal gait to allow a horse to keep *ventroflexion, additional joint strain, etc.* I didn't read ahead, so I don't know if I'm saying the same thing as someone else says in later posts to this question. Hope this helps in some way!
 
#25 · (Edited)
I was reading through all the posts and wanted to add...he's not fox trotting. I've seen and ridden many a MFTs - a fox trot looks like the horse is trotting in back and walking in front - like my avatar. He's not doing that. Right toward the very end of the short clip, he slips into a running walk for that last millisecond; the rest is stepping pace.
 
#26 ·
His gait has gotten a little better from what i can tell. (may be able to take some video today IF this dern rain holds off lol. OH one thing though...I read that taking them through tall grass encourages them to gait but when we take him through it he WILL NOT gait one step and as soon as u get him off of it he will...anyone else had this problem?
 
#27 ·
Yeah, grass won't do anything. Try putting bell boots loosely on his back feet and he might gait when you go to 'trot'.
 
#29 ·
Ok so the weather was GREAT to take a video but dern camera was dead!!! AAAAHHHHHHH i cant win lol Ill try again this weekend. Oh and guess what everyone, my boyfriend came home early from Afghanistan!!! So it will be much easier to get a video cause I can take it while he rides, but going ahead and warning, the horse Ill be on is probably going to be trotting so the video may be a little bumpy! LOL. I cant wait! This will be our first ride together in almost 4 months\!!!!!!
 
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