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Do You Really Need a Gaited Trainer?

by Anita Howe

People often email or phone me for training advice for their gaited horses. Upon extensive query, I often discover that many of their issues are not truly gait related but simply because their horse has never been trained with good, solid horsemanship basics. I tend to find they are often making some fundamental errors like over-bitting the horse, or trying to use weighted shoes, or their horse has never been properly trained to give to their legs and respond to the bit.

I will watch video they send me and commonly see them pulling the horse's head up, having been told their gaited horse should be high-headed and “framed up.” I will see horses that move extremely hollow with no bend or give and in very poor balance. Given just one these circumstances, it is impressive if any horse can gait correctly. Often horses are plagued by many of these problems.   

Although there is a vast need out there for sound, gimmick-free gait correction help and advice, there are very few trainers who truly understand how to help people who are seeking to school their horses in natural gait correction without the use of harsh, mechanical "aids". So great is this need, and so few and spread out are those to fill it, that there is very little hope in making even a small dent in that need. Therefore, I want to advise as many of you as I can to make this very honest determination: do you really need gait correction advice, or might you be in need of a good natural horsemanship trainer first?

After all, gaited horses are not a different species, as many gaited trainers seem to want you to believe. They are first and foremost horses and should be trained first as a horse! It is only after you have a good, solid foundation of softly giving to the bit, bending and balance, flexing and moving laterally off your legs, willingly stopping and moving out, that you can even begin to determine if your horse "just might" have a real gait issue. 

I have often advised people to find a good natural horsemanship trainer close enough for them to work with on a regular basis. It is amazing the number of "gait issues" that miraculously disappear after the horse learns to give, to bend, to flex, to move, and to respond to the rider in a soft and willing manor. I also highly recommend RFD-TV and the many natural horsemanship trainers offering their advice free of charge on their programming every week if you are fortunate enough to have it available on your television service

I also advocate that everyone train their gaited horses just like any other horse for the first 6-12 months under saddle, with the only exception being that they keep their horses at the flatwalk (or the equivalent) during that time. The focus should be on the basics of bit training, bending, balance and lateral movements. This is so very important and probably the single biggest payoff for every gaited horse.

It is invariably where I have to start with horses brought to me with gait problems because in order to correct the problem I must be able to influence their balance. In order to influence their balance I must have the cooperation of “willing” and fluid head and neck carriage as well as body posture and position. And you can do this yourself with the aid of natural horsemanship before you even contact a “gaited” trainer.

There are several other things that can mask themselves as gait problems:

• Horses with dental problems will be uncomfortable with the bit and will hold themselves awkwardly, often fearfully. This creates posture abnormalities, which then result in off-gaits. Getting a good dental check can reduce a number of current and future problems with horses working comfortably on and with the bit.

•  Severe and badly fitting bits cause these same reactions and postures. When horses are afraid of the bit, you have lost a crucial method of communication with them.

•  Poorly fitting saddles create pressure points and posture issues, causing a horse to hollow or brace in carrying the rider’s weight. Shoving a pad under a badly fitting saddle will not necessarily help and can often actually make the problem worse.

These are just a few of the initial checklist of things I run through with each horse and rider before we can even begin to look at gait. These issues must be ruled out first, and will often resolve many issues that owners had previously felt certain were gaiting troubles. It is amazing the number of times that people will email me weeks later and say they their horse is moving better once they found a milder bit, got that dental float, or found a saddle that actually fit the horse.

It is difficult to work with a horse’s mind when their body is in discomfort, so take care of his body first. Then you can reach his mind much easier, and have a much more willing horse to work with. When their bodies get comfortable, many off-gaited horses suddenly find natural gait their owners had no idea they had.

We've Moved!!!  

Howe They Walk Farm has relocated to the east side of Kansas City  ... new place, same great horses!

Our new location is: 

9969 D Highway, Napoleon, MO  64074

phone 816*230*6247  mobile is still 816*686*7748

Thanks for stopping by.

Anita and Randy Howe

call us at 816.230.6247 or mobile 816.686.7748

  or email us at ajh@howetheywalk.com