Gaited Horses: Horses With A "Unique Gait"

Posted by rockmartin on May 27th, 2021

Riders in movies typically go up and down on the backs of their horses in the simple gaits, regardless of whether they are riding romantically into the sunset, across the prairies, or fleeing in a wild canter: the up and down motion is still present.

While many horse breeds just have three specific gaits, so-called gaited horses can move in a variety of ways.

The walk, crawls, and canter or gallop is the main gaits among most horse breeds. The rider bounces up and down on the horse during the trot, which can cause back and hip pain after a while.

The Walk: Comfortable But Slow

The walk is the most leisurely of all the horse types. The horse switches between placing two or three hooves on the ground by moving one leg at a time with the same rate.

The walk is a four-beat motion that is steady, human-paced, and extremely comfortable to travel.

The Trot: A Two-Beat Gait

When you accelerate, the horse begins to trot. The horse raises both diagonal leg pairs at about the same moment in this gait, creating a brief moment of anticipation in the air.

The trot is a gait of two beats. It is inconvenient to ride and causes discomfort to the riders when they jump up and down while the horse's center of gravity goes forward and up and down.

Both Gaited Horse Breeds Have Two Simple Gaits: Speed And Amble

The speed is a two-beat gait, while the meander is a slightly unstable pace. The horse pushes one side's leg pairs at the same moment, then the other side's leg pairs. The rider doesn't really jump but rocks sideways while his center of gravity swings back, left, and right.

The speed is more relaxed than the diagonal trot, however the trip is not particularly smooth. The root gaits of most gaited horse breeds are pace and amble.

The Gallop Is Characterized By Speed

The gallop is a quicker version of the trot. The horse raises three limbs at the same time, two in front and one in back, then provides multiple limbs at the same time, a back and a front leg in diagonal, before lowering the third front limb to the ground. The gallop is now a three-beat motion.

Two-beat and four-beat gallops may also be conditioned, but they are often the product of a lack of coordination.

The three-beat gallop is really easy for the horse, but it can only be done for a short time because it consumes a great deal of energy.

Horses With A “Special Gait” Have Smooth Movements

When asked to speed up, some horse breeds retain the four-beat walk rhythm and can achieve rates of 14 to 15 km/h. A Gaited Horse has a "unique gait," which means they don't trot and are much more relaxed to ride because the rider isn't bouncing up and down on the horse.

A Sigh Of Relief For The Rider's Back

Gaited horses are an excellent choice for riders who have been forced to avoid riding due to back or hip issues.

They're also suitable for people who ride horses for long periods of time or over long distances.

While some gaited horses will trot, this particular gait substitutes the trot; however, they both have the walk and gallop in general.

Find more information relating to recreational riding, and gaited horse here.