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We're often asked about starter training for gaited horses. Whether it's about the right age to begin, what tack to use, or how much we should work on gait work. See a question and answer about this very subject that we addressed in a recent email communication.

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Watch as Brenda Imus explains in an easy-to-understand terms the mechanics of how different types of bits function, and what happens in your horse's mouth when you take on the reins. Eye-opening stuff!

One of the most common questions I hear from gaited horse owners is whether it is all right to canter, or to trot, their gaited horse. Or, can gaited horses canter? In regard to both questions, the answer is, "that depends."  Someone who rides a laterally oriented horse may do well to encourage the horse to canter, as it will teach it how to break up that addictive, lazy habit of pacing or step pacing, and teach it the basics of working off the haunches and rounding up through the back. The stronger and better conditioned the horse, the less likely...

I frequently remind people that a gaited horse’s saddle gait is more dependent upon conformation than upon registration. This is equally true of any kind of inherent trait or characteristic. We cannot deny, though, that breeding for a particular type of horse over time does result in overall physical and temperamental differences among various breeds. This may cause one breed of horse to be more or less suited to a particular use than another. Here is a brief overview of some of the characteristics intrinsic to the various gaited breeds. Please keep in mind that these are generalities only. Any...