1: breed? any ideas to through out there? he does gait, but not very smooth, hinting he is a cross or maybe just a bad mover.15.2 hands. gelding, 9 years old

2: he is a western horse, and i am looking for an event that we could compeat in if we wanted to (in the future, not right away.) he loves to trot, but i have not been able to try out his enderance yet. not barrel racing, he won't be able to make the tight turns. or just a fun game/goal i could set for us to occupy us for a while.

3: he is a pretty horse, isn't he? (has not shed most of winter coat in the pic, but will soon be a short haired, glossy coat!)

and here is a link to the pic. :

Paint or Spotted Saddle Horse?

I don't see any pics?

Just a shot in the dark, but what about pole bending?

Just because he doesn't consistently gait doesn't mean he's a cross, if he hasn't been trained and conditioned to maintain the gait he wouldn't be physically able to do it well. Although some gaited horses hit the ground at a rack, the majority don't.

you could try competative trail competitions (kind of like cross country and trail mixed). Probably the most well known is the ultimate cowboy challenge they air on RFD-TV sometimes but there are local clubs and different divisions.

i will try to put one up. sorry, i am not technolicaly inclined.

i have heard of pole bending, but i don't really know what it is....is it the one were you weave in and out of poles?

and the competitive trail comp. sound like a good one, plus i have all the room i need to practice for that. plus trail (cow-made trail, so it winds alot and doubles back, but still works.)

i might try to get a gaited bit, but gaiting doesn't matter all that much to me. it would be nice of course, but not a big deal. but before i get a gaited bit, i am trying a bitless bridle. i understand the use for bits, but would prefer to go without one if it isn't nessasary. i believe the B.B. i am looking at uses the head hug theory. i am making sure there is a warrenty though, just in case.

the link has been put up. sorry that it didn't work last time.


circlekinstructor:
you're everywhere! not in a bad way. your advice is very helpful, so thanks

lol i go to school full time and also work full time at a hospital to finance my addiction (4-legged addiction) so im sitting in front of a computer alot of the day. And i much rather be talking to yall about horses than actually paying attention in class or doing my work.

the pic is very small but judging by his shoulders, neck and head id say he had some walker (tennessee walker) in him somewhere.... just a guess. Theres so many breeds now adays and some many (some of the best) horses are mutts from way back it is really hard to tell oragin unless your horse is a pure bred or 1st gen. hybrid.

if you are not big on barrells you are probably not going to be a fan of pole bending. it requires TONS of speed and an extremelt agile horse. it takes lots of time, practice, patience and to be honest a fairly nuerotic horse.

before i ruffle any feathers, by neurotic i mean that the horse has the drive to run run run. empirically, these horses tend to be extremely hot and not begginner horses. but not always.

Check out this link:
YouTube - Junior Girls Pole Bending 2007 NLBRA Finals

Trail competitions usually involve water, opening some type of gate, retrieving something, waving something over your horse (tarp or coat) and stepping over or jumping some obstacle. these would be great things to start practicing (bareback if your feeling adventurous)

I wouldn't recommend buying a "gaited" bit. Often they are a gimmick and many of the gaited bits I've had experience with are pretty strong with long shanks and lots of leverage. If he respects it there is no reason you can't gait all day long in a plain snaffle. To get him gaiting consistently you really shouldn't let him trot at all, and until he is set in the gait cantering is not recommended. If you or your trainer don't have experience getting them to gait consistently it'd probably be best to find a gaited trainer, at least in the beginning. Decide what you'd like to do with him and whether or not working on the gait would be beneficial to that. If you're just going to trail ride there is nothing more comfortable than a gaited horse for hours in the saddle. Competative trails is great with gaited horses because they can cover ground quicker with less energy once they're conditioned for it.

thanks for the advice! i hope i can get him gaiting, but it might be a summer thing when i can spend some more time working on things on a daily (or almost daily) basis.

coughcough.....click on the pic and it should come up bigger in another tab.

and i do like barrels, but 1:havent done it a full speed and 2. don't think we would be very good at it. though we mat try it just to see if i am worng. i was told gaited horses are not good at the speedy, sharp turns that are needed in B.R.

Never know, I've heard of a few TWHs that kick butt in barrels, and I've seen a RMH stud do pretty well at it. If they're gaiting, they won't be able to make those sharp turns, but at a run they should be just as nimble as the average non gaited horse.

thanks! that should be no problem then, since he isn't trained to gait! will try i tomorrow (if i can find some markers and it isn't raining)

i hate when people say a horse cant do something just because they are not bred for it. (My pleasure gelding does hunter, eventing, WP, EP, team roping and gives lessons)

How did it go?

Looks like I'm a little late for this thread. Cute horse, yes he definitely looks more like a gaited type to me than a QH or TB. But very cute.