"I have a racking horse I would love to teach to rack myself but donft know how to go about doing it, I would love some advice please..."

Heather Holmes' Answer:

Dear Sarah,

If you have a registered racking horse, he should already know how to rack. It's a natural born gait. If you have a Saddlebred and want to teach it to rack, I'm afraid that's not my field. A registered racking horse should already have a smooth gait; you can improve on the gait in many different ways. Such as more contact with their mouth, pushing for a little more speed. If your horse does not have any kind of smooth gait now, I don't think he's a racking horse.
Thank you for your question.
Heather

"Yes, He already gaits, he racks sometimes but I donft know how to keep him in one he always moves into a gait he's a Racking Spotted Saddle Tenn..."

Walking horse and Ifm trying to teach him to park to but so far thatfs been unsuccessful, maybe I just donft know how to go about teaching him to do it I guess I want to teach him everything He's mixed with, I am currently thinking about starting him on a buggy. There is a picture of him above and again if you have any suggestions they would be greatly appreciated and a lot of help.

Heather Holmes' Answer:

Dear Sarah,

If you have a registered racking horse, he should already know how to rack. It's a natural born gait. If you have a Saddlebred and want to teach it to rack, I'm afraid that's not my field. A registered racking horse should already have a smooth gait; you can improve on the gait in many different ways. Such as more contact with their mouth, pushing for a little more speed. If your horse does not have any kind of smooth gait now, I don't think he's a racking horse. Thank you for your question.
Heather

"I am a 60-year-old man trying to decide which breed of horse to buy"

I have been doing a lot of research and it seems to me that a gaited horse would be best. At present I seem to be leaning strongly toward a Missouri fox trotter, however a TWH doesnft seem bad. Do you have any pros or cons about either breed?
P.S. We had a horse when I was about age 10 to 15

Heather Holmes' Answer:

Dear Richard,
A gaited horse is the ideal mount for us seniors. I find both MFT and TWH as a good horse. As far as a MFT goes, you want to find one that has more foundation bloodlines. I have a friend who breeds both MFT and TWH and her Fox Trotters have the older bloodlines and they have wonderful gaits. I personally have worked with TWH for more than 40 years. I am a little partial. I do, however, recommend the older bloodline horses, too. Any Walking Horse that has any type of older bloodlines like Prides Gold Coin or some kind of Midnight Sun in the pedigree should be a good choice. The older bloodline horses usually have a really good temperament and excellent gait. I don't know where you live, but I have a very good friend who lives in Tennessee and he can find just about anything with a good price. He also hauls anywhere in the country. My advice to you would be not to get a young horse. You will want to find something 7yrs or older. Good Luck.

Heather

"How could I get her to hold her head up but not stick her nose out in the air?"

I have a Spotted Saddle Horse Mare that I show locally and trail ride on, she gaits well, but when I ride her she tucks her chin down and keeps her head held sort of low, Yet when I ask her to keep her head up she sticks her nose out in the air. How could I get her to hold her head up but not stick her nose out in the air?

Heather Holmes' Answer:

Dear Allison,

I would guess a change of bit would help. Not knowing what type of bit you're riding with, it's difficult to recommend what type of bit to try. If you're not using a Wonder Bit, you might try it. It has a slight gag bit effect plus a little shank that can help tuck the nose. If your horse has a heavy thick throat, she may not be able to tuck her nose if her head is up. That's the best advice I can give with the limited information provided. Thank you for your question.

Heather

"but every time I ask her for a lope it is a disaster. She begins to cow kick out and sometimes tries to buck..."

Hello my name is Niki and I have been riding since I was 5years old. I got my Saddlebred Pinto back from the trainer and she is an angel, in the walk and trot. Now she will do anything and everything for my trainer in any gait. And for me she will do anything I ask of her in the walk and trot, but every time I ask her for a lope it is a disaster. She begins to cow kick out and sometimes tries to buck. I keep her moving so she doesn't get one off. Destiny (my mare's name) will just trot at her max speed until she decides to begin her fit. Please tell me what I can do to stop the problem and help me to transition from gait to gait without any issues. Thanks so much and God bless!

Heather Holmes' Answer:

Dear Niki,

If you have access to a round pen, I would try cantering in that for a while. You must teach your horse a specific command to canter. You should ALWAYS start your canter from a walk. Turn the horse's head to the rail and kick with the rail leg only. At the same time give a sharp verbal command "Canter". If you do not have access to a round pen, the try this formula on a fence line or arena. If the horse does not canter at the command, then STOP, let the horse settle, and try again. Thank you for your question.

Heather

"but has baby blue eyes is that common.. Second.. when taking him on smaller trails in woods etc. it’s like he doesn’t watch his feet and trips over himself some?"

I just purchased a Tennessee Walker/ Saddlebred cross, 15 yrs old and awesome to ride; I have 2 questions first he is chestnut w/ black mane and tail and legs but has baby blue eyes is that common, and where would that come from? Second question is he does great on open path or ring or pasture but when taking him on smaller trails in woods etc. its like he doesn’t watch his feet and trips over himself some?

Heather Holmes' Answer:

Scott,
The eye color most likely comes from somewhere back in his pedigree. I don't know about saddlebred breeding, but there is a lot of roan color in Walking horses' older bloodline. Without see the papers I can't give you a definitive answer. As far as what he's doing on the trails, perhaps he hasn't had a lot of that kind of riding. Whenever I took a horse on the trails that was not used to it, I would always try to maintain a little bit contact and not just ride with loose reins. It helps the horse to balance. Also if the horse is not paying attention, try keeping his attention by talking to him and letting him know he has to watch what he's doing. It's also important that you, as the rider, watch where you're going so that you can help the horse through rough footing. You want to let the horse know that he has to watch too. Thank you for your questions.

Heather

"Would using a weight on her right hind leg help her develop the lead?"

Hi, I have a 8 year old TWH mare that does everthing well but canter on the right lead. She goes very nice to the left but cross fires to the right. Would using a weight on her right hind leg help her develop the lead? If so how much? If not, any suggestions?

Heather Holmes' Answer:

If you choose to use weights to correct a lead problem. BE SURE TO PUT THE WEIGHT ON THE NON LEAD LEG!!!!!!!!!! You can also try cantering in a round pen. Most horses that cross-fire have either a balance problem or weakness in a hind leg. If you cannot correct the cross-firing with weights or circle cantering, have your vet check hind stifles.

Heather Holmes

"I have a foxtrotter walker that trips a lot..."

I have a foxtrotter walker that trips a lot with or without someone on her what should I do to help her.

Heather Holmes' Answer:

Dear Cathy, generally there are 2 reasons why a horse trips. One reason may be because the horse isn't paying attention. You can also shorten the toes on the front feet and put rolled toed shoes on them. Talk to your farrier.

Sincerely,
Heather Holmes

"I spent some time watching my horse on the right lead..."

Heather, I’m a little confused about your answer. You say “If you use weights to correct the lead be sure to put the weight on the non lead leg”. If she is cross firing to the right, I would put the weight (a little weight) on the right hind leg to make it work, or extend under her hind end and drive forward. Is this not the case? You also did not mention the amount of weight that would help build the strength in the leg?I spent some time watching my horse on the right lead and I don’t think it’s a classic cross fire. She seems to have a shorter stride on the right hind leg and that doesn’t happen all the time. I had a vet look at her Stifle and he could not find an issue with it. I believe it is a strength issue. My horse has been lazy when asked to canter to the right. Now she picks up the lead, but struggles to maintain the balance to carry it. She goes in small circles very well until she tires. That’s why I thinks it’s a strength thing.Like a human, I would think that working-out the “weak muscle” would be beneficial. Any response would be appreciated.

Heather Holmes' Answer:

Dear Tim, to be specific, if you are teaching a horse to canter on the right lead, you would weight the left leg. A horse goes against weight. Contrary to your thinking, the weight does not bring the leg under, but causes more hock action. If you think the horse has a weak hind leg, may I suggest you not canter until the leg is stronger and the horse is striding equally on both rear legs. A good strengthening exercise is long striding walks in deep sand or very soft or deep dirt. This should be done a little at a time working into a longer period. Cantering the horse will not strengthen a weak rear leg, only make it worse. The amount of weight used should be no less than 12 ounces. Please feel free to ask for more information if needed.

Heather Holmes.

"What's he trying to tell me?"

Hi Heather, I purchased a registered 10 year-old tenneesse walker gelding last year. He is well trained and healthy. My question is that when I lunge him at a trot or faster either in my 50' round pen or in the pasture he will go along fine for a little while and then just stops. No matter how much time I spend trying to get him to go again he refuses and just gets more and more tense. I use only my voice or raise my arm to have him move out. When I try to approach him to calm him down he starts backing away as if he is affraid. I've read that it's hard for some walkers to go in a circle. I have not seen any lameness. What's he trying to tell me? Thank you.

Heather Holmes' Answer:

Dear Lori, it has never been recommended that any type of gaited horse should be lunged in a circle for a long period of time. Round pen work is usually used in short training sessions. I have never had the need to put a 10 year old in a round pen. For what reason are you lunging him? Round pen work puts stress on the stifles. It sounds to me like your horse is getting uncomfortable and is rejecting the round pen for that reason. I wouldn't force the issue. Keep your round pen work to a minimum. Figure out how long his tolerance is, then stop before that time, if you truly need the round pen work.

Heather Holmes