Gaited Horse People
I don't mean to offend, but I've noticed some things about "Gaited Horse People." Of course, the same thing could probably be said of most anyone who is glued to a single breed or type. My mom also falls under the category of being a "Gaited Person."
Anyway! I took Kitt, our young Norwegian Fjord mare down to the horse park that is a little over a mile from where we live (which is really nice!). I went with my parents and I use it as a way to get Kitt more exposed to a more busy atmosphere as our little arena is pretty much free of distraction and completely familiar, making focus relatively easy. It also serves to get my parents out on their horses more regularly and give Dad even more confidence riding his little mare as he isn't really what one would consider a horseman. He rides because Mom rides.
I'm getting off track, I finished tacking Kitt up and was leading her up towards the arena when another truck and trailer pulled in. Being a highly unusual breed for our area and having such a distinct appearance the guy driving paused and asked "Is that an Icelandic?" I probably should have known then by the choice of breed he tried to peg her as. I responded, "Nope, she's a Norwegian Fjord." His next question "Is she gaited?" Response: "Uh, no." And then the guy just sort of lost interest and both of us continued on.
He and his companion were on Missouri Fox Trotters, I later found out. They and my mom gabbed quite a bit because they both rode the same breed and I continued working with Kitt.
But it illustrates my some-what muddled point. If it isn't gaited they don't really want anything to do with it and, if it is gaited, it's the greatest thing since sliced bread, irregardless of how crappy its conformation is, especially if it gaits well.
Kitt might be an odd breed and simply draw attention from her coloring (who can forget that bi-colored mane!), but she is also very well put together and in the initial evaluation of a horse, regardless of breed, that should be the thing that makes a horse worth looking at. I do note that the guy's horses weren't, ah, the best-looking Fox Trotters I've ever seen. Dakota (Mom's mare) was definitely of higher quality.
I was talking about it a little with a woman whose horse I've started working. He is a Rocky Mountain Horse and gaited, though it's taking a bit of a trick to get him to gait as he's a bit out of shape (trots wonderfully, though!). She just wants a safe, sane, and sound trail horse; he just happens to be gaited. And that's how it should be. I have a horse, it just happens to be (draft, stock, gaited, etc.)
I just don't get this one-breed (or one-type) mentality. There's so much in the world that you're missing when you're like that!
A good horse is a good horse no matter the breed, color, type of gait, or gender.
I'm unsure if my mom is serious or if she is just teasing me when she says "You don't like gaited horses." I often respond "It's not that I don't like them, I just don't have a use for them." Which is pretty much true. I teach riding, you instruct a kid on a gaited horse from the get-go and they're not going to know what to do when they come across a "normal" one that trots.
And yes, I know gaited horses are better for those who have physical problems sitting or posting the trot.
Of course this all leads into the Quarter Horse "Discussion" that I should probably refrain from before I get more rambling.
I guess the core of it is: Don't snub your nose at a horse because it's not your "favorite breed." Don't close yourself to opportunities to discover a new breed or type because you're too fixated on your own. Long live variety!
Anyway! I took Kitt, our young Norwegian Fjord mare down to the horse park that is a little over a mile from where we live (which is really nice!). I went with my parents and I use it as a way to get Kitt more exposed to a more busy atmosphere as our little arena is pretty much free of distraction and completely familiar, making focus relatively easy. It also serves to get my parents out on their horses more regularly and give Dad even more confidence riding his little mare as he isn't really what one would consider a horseman. He rides because Mom rides.
I'm getting off track, I finished tacking Kitt up and was leading her up towards the arena when another truck and trailer pulled in. Being a highly unusual breed for our area and having such a distinct appearance the guy driving paused and asked "Is that an Icelandic?" I probably should have known then by the choice of breed he tried to peg her as. I responded, "Nope, she's a Norwegian Fjord." His next question "Is she gaited?" Response: "Uh, no." And then the guy just sort of lost interest and both of us continued on.
He and his companion were on Missouri Fox Trotters, I later found out. They and my mom gabbed quite a bit because they both rode the same breed and I continued working with Kitt.
But it illustrates my some-what muddled point. If it isn't gaited they don't really want anything to do with it and, if it is gaited, it's the greatest thing since sliced bread, irregardless of how crappy its conformation is, especially if it gaits well.
Kitt might be an odd breed and simply draw attention from her coloring (who can forget that bi-colored mane!), but she is also very well put together and in the initial evaluation of a horse, regardless of breed, that should be the thing that makes a horse worth looking at. I do note that the guy's horses weren't, ah, the best-looking Fox Trotters I've ever seen. Dakota (Mom's mare) was definitely of higher quality.
I was talking about it a little with a woman whose horse I've started working. He is a Rocky Mountain Horse and gaited, though it's taking a bit of a trick to get him to gait as he's a bit out of shape (trots wonderfully, though!). She just wants a safe, sane, and sound trail horse; he just happens to be gaited. And that's how it should be. I have a horse, it just happens to be (draft, stock, gaited, etc.)
I just don't get this one-breed (or one-type) mentality. There's so much in the world that you're missing when you're like that!
A good horse is a good horse no matter the breed, color, type of gait, or gender.
I'm unsure if my mom is serious or if she is just teasing me when she says "You don't like gaited horses." I often respond "It's not that I don't like them, I just don't have a use for them." Which is pretty much true. I teach riding, you instruct a kid on a gaited horse from the get-go and they're not going to know what to do when they come across a "normal" one that trots.
And yes, I know gaited horses are better for those who have physical problems sitting or posting the trot.
Of course this all leads into the Quarter Horse "Discussion" that I should probably refrain from before I get more rambling.
I guess the core of it is: Don't snub your nose at a horse because it's not your "favorite breed." Don't close yourself to opportunities to discover a new breed or type because you're too fixated on your own. Long live variety!