As compared to trotting horses, gaited horses are one of those great horses that have several enjoyable ‘gears.’ As a matter of fact, most horse owners have one primary objective: getting the gait more steadily without the horse reverting to normal pace or trot. Besides that, they would like to ensure that their horses are not performing a stepping pace-perhaps it too smooth for riders. In this regard, what are supposed to do if you need your horse to perform different gaits?

Needless to say, if the above has been your concern, then the goods are here for you. Inherently, just like any other living thing with its ordinary senses, a horse can learn to perform tens and hundreds of different gaits only if you engage it in intensive training. Horse riding experts advice that training a house to achieve the above objective is as easy as counting 1-2-2-4. The truth of the matter is that you can easily learn several ways on how to walk your horse right into its best natural saddle gait.

However, before you begin the training program, you have put in order some fundamental things. For instance, you have to ensure that your horse’s tack is extremely comfortable so that there is plenty of freedom through its back. Remember, discomfort and other physical restrictions will sabotage the best efforts of gaits training. Moreover, you are advised to plan to ride with the help of right and comfortable impulsion aids, which include gears like spurs, crops, or even long reins.

Without further ado, the following are the incredible horse-gait training steps:

Step #1: Ask your horse for active walk

An active walk is one of the amazing practices that will prepare your horse to learn different gaiting skills. At this stage, you are supposed to ask your horse for active as well as vigorous walk. However, you are advised not allow it to jump up to a much faster gait. Indeed, your horse needs to walk as fast as it can without changing pace. This procedure is commonly referred to as ‘working the walk’.

Step #2: Maintain an active walk

As your horse speed up, there is high tendency that it will immediately return to slower walks. Take not of this behavior, and as soon as you notice it, you are advised to take corrective action to prevent it. In most cases, to keep it at constant high speeds, you are supposed to sit back well and use your impulsion aids and legs to maintain its speed. However, you are warned against using boot heel to bump it to high speed; horses learning different gaiting skills usually ignore the annoying and continual nudging on its rib cage.

Step #3: Increase the number of collection

Once your horse has got used to ‘working the walk,’ then this is right time introduce other collections. Probably, this will help maintain horse correct form and timing as well as enabling the rider to obtain greater speed and impulsion.

Step #4. Again, make it move into an active walk

Starting from a halt, you are required to ask your horse to move once more into an intense walk. At this stage, light rein contact has to be maintained just to encourage it to keep its weight rearward. This procedure lightens up its front end as well as allowing it to ‘dig in’ from behind. This session should take at most three riding sessions. The results of this exercise are that your horse will improve its gait’s speed and timing.

Step #5: Further increase collection and speed

Once your horse has responded very well to step #4 procedures (halt and rein-back exercise), then it is the time again to request for greater speeds and collections via the half halt.

Conclusion

If you engage your horse into consistent working the walk, increasing the impulsion, collection, and speed by practicing the rein-back, halt, and half halt, it will soon become an expert in different gaits. However, you are highly warned to avoid getting the services of a gaited-horse trainer who employs sorts of unnecessary shortcuts such as unnatural trimming and shoeing, chains, weights, and other artificial aids. Such techniques will have adverse effects to horse in the long run.

 

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