Training a gaited horse to trot
Posted: Sun Oct 18, 2015 7:59 pm
I am helping a friend with a project pony. He is adorable, a sweetie pie, and very fun to ride. He is 14. 2, around 15 years old, and came to her unbroke a couple of years ago. Her son got him going under saddle so that he is fine with being ridden, tied, trail ridden, etc. but she wanted me to see if I could polish him up. Get him ready to take to local shows, some fun stuff.
Well, the first time I rode him, I noticed his walk was nice, free, easy. When I asked for a trot, he went into this amble thing. It is slow but not, as far as I can tell, a distinct four beat gait like a rack. No head bob like a Walking horse gait. It could be a very slow pace. I need video, have not been able to get video of us under saddle yet. When I push for more forward, he goes into a canter. He loves to canter, it is his preferred gait, both directions.
In the pasture with the other horses and moving on his own, I have seen him trot up to the hay pile ( not do the gaited thing). So I know he can trot and that it is not that foreign for him to do.
The only way I can get a trot under saddle, though, is to start on trot poles. I can then keep him in the trot without the amble thing. But every single time we trot, we have to start over trot poles, or he goes straight into the amble/pace or just straight into canter.
He has not had much training beyond bareback riding around the pasture, does not know how to hold himself up, feels like riding a noodle, and all of this I can fix with patience, time, and miles. My question is, have any of you had experience with a horse who has gaited tendencies like this? Is working with them on this issue worth the trouble, or will we always need trot poles in order to go from a walk into a trot, without some weird gaited thing In between? I have ridden him three times now, and am trying to decide if I need to continue to work with him, or back out now, because of this issue.
And he was a rescue, none of us have much of an idea what breed he is. He "looks" like a QH -Arab cross to me, but the gaited thing is throwing me off. He is stout with a cresty neck, but he was also a stud for a long time, so that may affect his look, even now. He is such a sweetheart, and perfect in every other way. But I just don't know how to approach this issue.
Well, the first time I rode him, I noticed his walk was nice, free, easy. When I asked for a trot, he went into this amble thing. It is slow but not, as far as I can tell, a distinct four beat gait like a rack. No head bob like a Walking horse gait. It could be a very slow pace. I need video, have not been able to get video of us under saddle yet. When I push for more forward, he goes into a canter. He loves to canter, it is his preferred gait, both directions.
In the pasture with the other horses and moving on his own, I have seen him trot up to the hay pile ( not do the gaited thing). So I know he can trot and that it is not that foreign for him to do.
The only way I can get a trot under saddle, though, is to start on trot poles. I can then keep him in the trot without the amble thing. But every single time we trot, we have to start over trot poles, or he goes straight into the amble/pace or just straight into canter.
He has not had much training beyond bareback riding around the pasture, does not know how to hold himself up, feels like riding a noodle, and all of this I can fix with patience, time, and miles. My question is, have any of you had experience with a horse who has gaited tendencies like this? Is working with them on this issue worth the trouble, or will we always need trot poles in order to go from a walk into a trot, without some weird gaited thing In between? I have ridden him three times now, and am trying to decide if I need to continue to work with him, or back out now, because of this issue.
And he was a rescue, none of us have much of an idea what breed he is. He "looks" like a QH -Arab cross to me, but the gaited thing is throwing me off. He is stout with a cresty neck, but he was also a stud for a long time, so that may affect his look, even now. He is such a sweetheart, and perfect in every other way. But I just don't know how to approach this issue.