Horse gait
Horses can use various gaits (patterns of leg movement) during locomotion across solid ground, either naturally or as a result of specialized training by humans.
Special training is often required before a horse will perform an ambling gait in response to a rider's command.
[2] The British Horse Society equitation examinations also require proficiency in the gallop as distinct from the canter.
[6] In detail, a horse starts a walk by lifting its left front leg (the other three feet are touching the ground).
However, a rider will almost always feel some degree of gentle side-to-side motion in the horse's hips as each hind leg reaches forward.
The trot is a two-beat gait that has a wide variation in possible speeds and averages about 13 kilometres per hour (8.1 mph).
[7] The North American speed record for a racing trot under saddle was measured at 48.68 kilometres per hour (30.25 mph)[8] In this gait, the horse moves its legs in unison in diagonal pairs.
Each time another diagonal pair of legs hits the ground, the rider can be jolted upwards out of the saddle and meet the horse with some force on the way back down.
Therefore, at most speeds above a jog, especially in English riding disciplines, most riders post to the trot, rising up and down in rhythm with the horse to avoid being jolted.
[7] To not be jostled out of the saddle or harm the horse by bouncing on its back, riders must learn specific skills in order to "sit" the trot.
Both require tremendous collection, careful training, and considerable physical conditioning for a horse to perform them.
[9] The canter, or lope as it is known in Western circles of riding, is a controlled three-beat gait that is usually a bit faster than the average trot but slower than the gallop.
On the third beat, the horse catches itself on the left front leg while the diagonal pair is momentarily still in contact with the ground.
Except in special cases, such as the counter-canter, it is desirable for a horse to lead with its inside legs when on a circle.
The rider typically signals the horse which lead to take when moving from a slower gait into the canter.
It is the fastest gait of the horse, averaging about 40 to 48 kilometres per hour (25 to 30 mph), and in the wild is used when the animal needs to flee from predators or simply cover short distances quickly.
Then both gaits end with the striking off of the leading leg, followed by a moment of suspension when all four feet are off the ground.
The resulting photos, known as The Horse in Motion, are the first documented example of high-speed photography and they clearly show the horse airborne.According to Equix, who analyzed the biometrics of racing Thoroughbreds, the average racing colt has a stride length of 24.6 feet (7.5 m); that of Secretariat, for instance, was 24.8 feet (7.6 m), which was probably part of his success.
The trot is much more common, but some horses, particularly in breeds bred for harness racing, naturally prefer to pace.
On the other hand, a slow pace is considered undesirable in an Icelandic horse, where it is called a lull or a "piggy-pace".
A pacing horse, being smaller and taking quicker steps, moves from side to side at a rate that becomes difficult for a rider to follow at speed, so though the gait is faster and useful for harness racing, it becomes impractical as a gait for riding at speed over long distances.
Based on studies of the Icelandic horse, it is possible that the pace may be heritable and linked to a single genetic mutation on DMRT3 in the same manner as the lateral ambling gaits.
Though these names derive from differences in footfall patterns and speed, historically they were once grouped together and collectively referred to as the "amble".
[18] In almost all cases, the primary feature of the ambling gaits is that one of the feet is bearing full weight at any one time, reflected in the colloquial term, "singlefoot".
