Gaits of Horses Study Notes

Gaits of Horses

Gait Categories

1. Natural Gaits

Natural gaits are performed by various horse breeds including Quarter Horse, Paint Horse, Appaloosa, Thoroughbreds, Arabian, Saddlebred Horse, and Morgan.

a. Walk

• Considered the foundation gait.
• It is a four-beat gait.
• Each foot hits the ground independently.
• The pattern of the gait can be:
  • Right hind, right front, left hind, left front
  • Right front, left hind, left front, right hind
• Each of the four feet strike the ground separately from the other:
  • 1st beat: right hind leg
  • 2nd beat: right fore leg
  • 3rd beat: left hind leg
  • 4th beat: left fore leg

b. Trot

• A two-beat diagonal gait.
• Legs work in paired diagonals.
• The pattern of the gait can be:
  • Right hind and left front, then left hind and right front
  • Left hind and right front, then right hind and left front
• A rapid, diagonal, two-beat gait in which the right front and left rear feet hit the ground in unison, and the left front and right rear feet hit the ground in unison.
  • 1st beat: right fore / left hind
  • 2nd beat: left fore / right hind
• The horse travels straight without swaying sideways when trotting

c. Canter/Lope

• A three-beat gait.
• One pair of feet strikes the ground simultaneously and the other two feet land independently.
• Has a right or left lead.
  • Right lead: left hind, right hind and left front, then right front
  • Left lead: right hind, left hind and right front, then left front
• Horses are on the right lead when circling to the right and left lead when circling to the left.
• A fast three-beat gait
• Depending on the lead, the two diagonal legs hit the ground at the same time.
• The other hind leg and foreleg hitting at different times
  • The Right-Lead Canter:
    • 1st beat: left hind leg
    • 2nd beat: right hind / left fore
    • 3rd beat: right fore leg
  • The Left-Lead Canter:
    • 1st beat: right hind leg
    • 2nd beat: left hind / right fore
    • 3rd beat: left fore leg

d. Gallop (Run)

• Appears to be only a faster gait, but actually a different gait containing four beats.
• Also has a right and left lead.
  • Left lead: right hind, left hind, right front, left front
  • Right lead: left hind, right hind, left front, right front
• The fastest gait with four beats
  • The Right-Lead Gallop:
    • 1st beat: left hind leg
    • 2nd beat: right hind leg
    • 3rd beat: left fore leg
    • 4th beat: right fore leg
  • The Left-Lead Gallop:
    • 1st beat: right hind leg
    • 2nd beat: left hind leg
    • 3rd beat: right fore leg
    • 4th beat: left fore leg

2. Artificial Gaits

Natural to specific breeds of horses (gaited horses): Tennessee Walking Horse, Missouri Fox Trot, five-gaited American Saddlebred Horse: animated walk, trot, slow gait, rack and canter; Standardbred Horse driven in harness racing and compete as trotters (2-beat diagonal) or pacers (2-beat lateral).

a. Running Walk

• The fast ground-covering walk of the Tennessee Walking Horse.
• It is an artificial gait that is faster than the normal walk.
• The horse moves with a gliding motion as the hind leg oversteps the forefoot print by 12-18 inches or more.

b. Slow Gait

• This four-beat lateral gait is also known as the stepping pace.
• In this gait, the horse performs a broken pace, with the hind and front leg on the same side leaving the ground and landing at slightly different times.
• The slow gait is performed by the five-gaited Saddlebred.

c. Pace

• A lateral two-beat gait in which the right front and rear feet hit the ground in unison and the left front and rear feet hit the ground in unison.
• There is a swaying from right to left when the horse paces.

d. Rack

• A snappy four-beat gait in which the joints of the legs are highly flexed.
• The forelegs are lifted upward to produce a flashy effect.
• This is an artificial gait, whereas the walk, trot, pace, gallop and canter are natural gaits.
• The rack is popular in the show-ring for speed and animation.