Form to Function

To improve any horse’s gaits I first consider how to improve his shape or structural presentation. Shape is best understood by standing back and looking at your horse from the side. Your horse’s profile is his shape. A horse’s shape will determine how the horse uses his legs. If reach or lift is desired in the way a horse moves his front legs or more stride is desired from his back legs it is necessary to change his shape.

When assessing a horse’s conformation I view the horse considering the phrase - form to function. I want the body to have the correct form so that the horse can perform the desired function. To augment the function I then consider the horse’s shape or structural presentation. Over time I slowly change this shape to draw out improved movement. By changing the horse’s shape I improve his form which leads to the improvement of his function or movement. The function of any horse is determined by his job. I shape the horse to make this job easier. When the horse is in the right shape he will develop proper muscling and will then relax in the desired movement. When changing the horse’s shape I am very careful to stay in the boundaries of his conformation so that no strain is introduced. All training should be performed considering the horse’s well being and like any athlete a horse should be worked in a way to improve overall muscling and understanding. Before I condition and influence the shape of a horse’s body I reflect on how his body was designed to work.

Consider that there are three pillars in front of a horse: one at the hip, one at the shoulder, and one at the nose. Between these pillars are arches of spine. Like a bridge, the arches need to be round for strength. The neck and the back are these arches, and by using collection they control the movement of the horse.

Collecting a horse’s head produces a result similar to bending a fencing foil (sword). It is easy to bend the tip, but the shaft is more firm. The head and neck of the horse are fairly easy to collect, but the back proves to be slightly more difficult.

The horse’s back is similar to the back of a human being. If you sway your back (push your stomach forward while keeping your shoulders and hips stationary), you will find it very hard to lift a leg forward. This is because the hip is locked by the spine’s inversion. If you roll your back into a round arch, however, you will be able to lift your leg forward as high as you can. The horse’s stride is similarly affected. If the back of the horse is round, the rear legs will stride under the horse’s body and support his weight through the forward movement. In a Walking Horse it is very important to have a very round back to improve over-stride.

Over-stride is the most defining action of the Walking Horse’s gait. Walking Horses transfer more sustained weight to their rear legs than any other breed. Through collection and conformation they then take a longer stride, bearing this weight through the movement of their gait. With this rounded back and long stride they overstep their front hoof track from two to five feet with their rear leg on the same side. This action is referred to as over-stride.

There is a side effect to this elongated stride termed head-shake. Reflect on a chicken walking in a barnyard. The chicken pecks his head while walking to balance his body. When a horse of any breed is walking slowly, it tends to move its head up and down to balance the movement of its body. The Walking Horse, with its naturally longer stride, may shake his head five to six times harder while balancing his over-stride. When the Walking Horse is relaxed and loose, confident in his movement and conditioned for the task, it is beautiful to watch this whipping action of the head. The head-shake should roll through the spine and be elastic, being a balance to the stride of the rear leg.

The front leg of the Walking Horse should move like a swim stroke. It should be round in motion and reach forward to grab the ground. The horse’s head should be rounded down (into a medium head set) like a swimmer’s head to free the shoulders and back for maximum stretch, leaving the hips free to propel the animal. Think of the difference between the dog paddle and the swim stroke; this difference is called collection.

A Walking Horse’s natural knee action can be as low as a Quarter Horse or as high as a Grand Prix Dressage Horse or Saddlebred. This difference will depend highly on conformation.

A good quality horse should have a strong medium action that balances the look of his stride. A Park Horse should have a level front end (the upper leg breaking at a right angle from the ground) and should have a four- to five-foot over-stride to match this action. The Park Horse should be a picture in fluid motion.

To ride over long distances, as the Walking Horse was bred to do, it is necessary to have less action so that the horse doesn’t exhaust himself in the first 20 minutes. The Walking Horse on the trail still should be collected on a light rein and should have plenty of over-stride to create the smooth ride the breed is known for.

Along with the Walking Horse’s relaxed disposition, this elongated gait is very pleasant to the rider.

There are six defining body positions that affect how the horse moves:

1.            Hip rolled under with a round back.

2.            Hip flat with a flat back.

3.            Head high and over-collected.

4.            Head low and collected with a flat neck.

5.             Head collected with an arched neck in a medium head-set.

6.            Nose out and uncollected.

The Walking Horse uses positions 1 and 5. To understand how to shape our breed, it is also important to understand how trainers of other breeds shape their horses for their best performance. All breeds of horse use the rule of form to function.

1.            Hip rolled under with a round back. This can be seen in breeds other than the Walking Horse. A Reining Horse uses this position when sliding or when in the roll-back. A Dressage Horse should present this hip position when performing movements under collection. All three types of horses lope or canter with this hip position, creating a smoother motion.

2.            Hip flat with a flat back. The Dressage Horse tends to flatten out at the extended trot, and the Arabian and Fox Trotter move with this hip position. Notice the hock action produced with this shape; the horses tend to trail-out behind themselves.

3.            Head high and over-collected. The Walking Horse and the Saddlebred are both over-collected in the preceding pictures. The Walking Horse has his nose behind the vertical, and the Saddlebred’s head and neck are jammed back in an over compressed position. Notice that both head-sets remove the reach of the leg movement and, instead, create an up and down march to the leg. This leg movement taken to the extreme is called hanging.

4.            Head low and collected with a flat neck. This head-set is common to the Quarter Horse and is used to allow the rider to rope over the horse’s head. In other breeds of horse this head-set causes the horse to scuff his front hooves and may cause the horse to trip. This position may cause the horse to transfer more weight to the front legs, which makes the horse unable to lift his front legs and break at the knee.

5.            Head collected with an arched neck in a medium head-set. This head position is common to many breeds and English riding styles. This head and neck position works with the rest of the horse’s body to help with balance, allowing the horse to be adjusted easily in many ways. This head-set can help to create a soft mouth because the horse is not relying on the rider’s hands to balance the horse’s body. The spine of the horse is at ease rather than forced, which allows for freer movement even though the horse is collected. A horse in this position also will be easier to adjust throughout the spine, including his back. The horses shown above are a Walking Horse and a Dressage Horse. Both are reaching with their shoulder and foreleg. Each horse has a different requirement for balance and gait, but both horses exhibit that they are relaxed and balanced.

6.            Nose out and uncollected. Pictured above are a Standardbred Pacer and an Icelandic Horse. Both breeds use this head position to create stride and reach. An Icelandic Horse at the Tolt is similar in its movement to the Standardbred. Both breeds desire speed and use extension for this purpose. The Standardbred shows that when the nose comes out, the foreleg and shoulder will follow. To a lesser degree, this idea can be used to produce more reach in other breeds.

To simplify these six rules, I offer this brief summary:

1.                             Hip rolled under with a round back creates stride—too much will break the horse’s timing and produce a stiff look, possibly leading to hock damage.

2.                             Hip flat with a flat back produces hock action—too much and the horse will trail-out behind.

3.                             Head high and collected creates leg lift—too much leads to foldiness or a trapped foreleg, and the horse may tend to hang or jerk his front legs up in a robotic way.

4.                             Head low and collected with a flat neck keeps the hooves close to the ground—too much will cause the horse to trip.

5.                             Head collected with an arched neck in a medium head-set produces balance and makes the back more limber—too much will ruin a Western Pleasure Horse.

6.                             Nose out and uncollected produces stride and, in a small degree, is helpful in developing reach—too much will cause a gaited horse to pace.

As we all search for the perfect gaited horse, whether it is for the comfort of the ride or the satisfaction of a flashy show horse, it is necessary to remember how the shape of the horse is affecting his performance. Remember these examples and see if you can adjust your horse’s movement over the months to produce a better result.

Article by Scot MacGregor

Edited by Sally Sharpe