Hi ilovemyhorse!
Glad to see you joined us - what do you ride?

Try riding a arabian crossed with a walker. Boy now, You have aride there. I have 2 arabian crossed walkers, and would not trade them for nothing. But also have 3 registered walkers. Love that rocking chair gait.

that is soooooo true, chase - as much as I love arabians there is no way I can go back to riding them again - and even if I could, would I want to?

Yeehaw, a gaited horse fan club!

Once you ride gaited, you'll be reluctant to go back to anything else. It's like saddling a porch glider... the best, most comfortably long distance ride yet.

I love my gaited horses. I have 2 registed walker mares & a register walker stud. My husband has ALWAYS rode gaited horses, amd doesnot like to get on a quarter horse. The gaited horses are so wonderful, but if you really want a ride. Get you a arabian ans walker mixed. That horse I had would stay in gait and rock you in the saddle like a rocking chair. But if you ever told him to go you better be holding on the your hat. That arabian blood would bust out and blow you out of the saddle. Pull him back and he would fall right back in that gait. My husband had a arabian/walker, and he was the same way. You could run him all day then pull him back and he would fall right in to that gait. It is a wonderful ride. But I love my walker mares to. They have a wonderful gait, smooth and and flowing. A gaited horse is the only way to go. Our whole saddle club rides gaited horses. If you are not gaited, you get lefted in the dust.

So Mary, was Jackson trained already when you got him? My mare had been in the breeding barn & some trails, but no real "training". So I have the pleasure of it - and it really is a pleasure. Charm is also starting to become a "people horse" .... She will walk up to me for scratching or just to "visit". She had never had the one-on-one with a person before.

Well have you ever seen a gaited horse that only gaits while out in the pasture or does it run ,buck and do the etc as other horses? Well mine loves to do everything,he loves to gait,race,runwalk,etc. I keep him collected up in his gait when I want to gait, I will race him agaist friends horses,and have had no problem with it messing up his gait? I think some gaited horses you might have to work a little harder to keep them in their gait but there isn't anything wrong with that

Hey, I had a car accident that has messed up my back and I found out that if I wanted to be able to enjoy the riding it was going to be better if I got a gaited horse. Mine is a Bay Mo. Foxtrotter-gelding (dessert wild fire)aka Jackson. I do love gaited horses,after I had my accident I thought my riding days were over...then a friend of mine turned me on to gaited horses and said I should just try one and it was love at first ride,I went from not being able to ride to riding for hours.... Best money I spent!!! There is riding after injury if you find the right horse. Have good gaiting!!!

I have been training horses for many years, but having recently become the owner of a gaited horse I had questions reguarding collection. I have heard some say that you can't or shouldn't collect a foxtrotter, or that you shouldn't trot a gaited horse. Much of this sounds suspiciously like old wives tales to me. I think the deciding factor is how you train. In training for consistancy in gaits, it doesn't matter which gait your horse is in, as long as it is consistant i.e. till you change it.
Any thoughts on these things???