The natural ambling gaits are all four beat gaits which share the same footfall sequence left hind - left fore - right hind - right fore - but which differ in where the hooves land in relation to each other and also the timing of each footfall relative to the footfall before and after it. It is basically impossible to see this clearly at normal speed. Via slow motion video I hope it becomes easier to see and understand so that you can better understand the natural ambling gaits of horses. Happy Gaiting!!
Flat Foot Walk - regular speed and slow motion
Slow motion video of the Walk, Flat Foot Walk, and Fox Trot
To emphasize the diagonal nature of the fox trot the footfall commonly gets called out as left front - right hind - right front - left hind. Well one day I believe the Lord nudged me to notice something I had never really noticed - it suddenly struck me that via starting counting footfall sequence on different feet we are comparing apples to oranges rather than comparing apples to apples. It had always puzzled me how the same gaiting gene produced different gaits - lateral gaits - square gaits - diagonal gaits. So I copied and pasted the fox trot sequence twice in a row and then looked at the footfall sequence of the fox trot starting on the same foot - the left hind - as we commonly do with all the other four beat ambling gaits left front - right hind - right front - left hind - left front - right hind - right front - left hind.. Oh my! If you start counting on the left hind then even the fox trot has the same footfall sequence as all the other four beat ambling gaits. And suddenly it made perfect sense how the same gaiting gene gives us all the various four beat ambling gaits because what that gaiting gene gives us is a specific footfall sequence namely: left hind - left front - right hind - right front.
Slow motion video of the Saddle Rack - claimed to be the smoothest of the four beat ambling gaits - square gait - even timing - NO overstride
A second video of the Saddle Rack - starts at regular speed and goes to slow motion - the regular speed portion of the short video allows you to hear the rhythm (pucka, pucka, pucka) or some folks say (taka, taka, taka) and then the slow motion portion allows you to better (more accurately) see the independent limb movement. I wish I had had the phone camera aimed better but I do believe seeing what can be seen and hearing what can be heard is helpful.
A third video of the Saddle Rack - this one of our Mountain Pleasure Horse weanling filly, Rockin R Sriracha, being led in hand - just naturally doing the Saddle Rack - and naturally carrying her head how it makes sense to her for balance purposes. The Mountain Pleasure Horse aka Old Kentucky Saddler is an ancestral contributor to every current gaited breed which was developed in North America (ALL of them - not some of them) - this was determined by DNA analysis done by the University of Kentucky - not simply by oral history. Mountain Pleasure Horse often is abbreviated MPH - they are a critically endangered breed which IMO is worth the effort to preserve alive for future generations. It will take MUCH effort by many caring people that love them to move them off the slow motion path to extinction and onto the path of recovery. Here is hoping that you choose to make the Mountain Pleasure Horse YOUR breed of gaited horse and help in that effort. This link takes you to the Mountain Pleasure Horse Association website https://www.mpha-oldkentuckysaddler.com/ if you would like to learn more about this GREAT breed that has quietly but profoundly impacted ALL the current gaited breeds developed in North America.
Slow motion video of the Running Walk - square gait - significant overstride
Slow motion video of the Stepping Pace - claimed to be the most common four beat ambling gait - lateral gait - can have overstride but does not always have overstride - uneven timing
Lateral four beat ambling gaits have a lateral emphasis in the gait. This means that both limbs on the same side of the horse move together MOST of the time they are moving. Generally that occurs via the lateral pair leaving the ground together - swinging together a while - then landing separately to get the four beats.
Square four beat ambling gaits have independent limb movement - there appears to be no pairing of either the lateral or diagonal limbs.
Diagonal four beat ambling gait has a diagonal emphasis in the gait. This means that both diagonal limbs (front on one side of body and hind on the other side of the body) move togehter MOST of the time they are moving - with the front hoof in that diagonal pair landing slightly before the hind hoof in that diagonal pair. The diagonal pair leaves the ground together then the front hoof in that diagonal pair lands slightly before the hind in that diagonal pair. This produces an uneven four beat ambling gait 1-2--3-4.
Controversy - one or two diagonal four beat ambling gait(s)??? Some folks contend there are two diagonal ambling gaits - the fox trot which REQUIRES head nod - the broken trot which has no head nod. The slow motion video says the footfall is the same whether the horse nods its head or not. That suggests to me that the fox trot and the broken trot are NOT different gaits but are the same gait according to the footfall. --- If you feel certain that the footfall is different between the head nodders and the non-nodders then please do send me slow motion video which CLEARLY shows the difference. Thanks.
Uneven four beat ambling gait - the foot fall is not all evenly spaced in time. 1-2--3-4
Even four beat ambling gait - every foot fall is evenly spaced in time to the foot fall before and afer it. 1-2-3-4
Trotty generally this means that if the gaiting horse breaks gait it tends to break into the hard trot. The term "trotty" may at times get used to mean other things by gaited horse people. One example is if a horse carries the gaiting gene but naturally trots and does not naturally do any of the four beat ambling gaits under saddle or at liberty in the pasture.
Pacey generally this means that if the gaiting horse breaks gait it tends to break into the hard pace. The term "pacey" may at times get used to mean other things by gaited horse people. One example is if a horse carries the gaiting gene but naturally paces and does not naturally do any of the four beat ambling gaits under saddle or at liberty in the pasture.
Overstride this means that the hind foot lands in front of the front hoof print. The Flat Foot Walk and the Running Walk MUST have overstride - it is fundamental to each of those square gaits. The Stepping Pace can have overstride but can also not have overstride.
What makes ALL of the various four beat ambling gaits smoother than the 2 two beat gaits - the trot and the pace? Both the trot and the pace (two-beat) have a period of suspension when no feet are on the ground. Right after that suspension phase the horse reconnects with the ground. Two-beat gaits thus rise and fall - loft up slightly off the ground - fall back to the ground. All that rising and falling is what makes them "rough" to the rider. Four beat ambling gaits do not have a moment of suspension - they always have at least one foot on the ground (if you believe there are exceptions please verify that to me with a slow motion video that clearly shows it - thanks) - thus much much less rising and falling.
Motion felt in the saddle while doing various four beat ambling gaits. Most gaited horses have zero or very near zero up and down motion felt in the saddle. Those doing a lateral based four beat ambling gait tend to have a little side to side motion in the saddle. Those with a lot of overstride tend to have forward and back motion in the saddle (may also have side to side if gait is lateral based with overstride). And fox trotting horses tend to have a bit of forward and back motion in the saddle but no side to side motion - generally a little, a very little, up and down motion. Happy Gaiting!!
God willing, I will add to the slow motion gaiting footfall videos as opportunity allows. And I apologize that the slow motion videos I have taken myself and posted are not professional videographer quality - I am taking them using my phone camera while riding - I cannot see where the camera is aimed (no selfie mode option in 1/8 slow motion video mode on my phone - so the screen is totally facing away from me) - I simply must aim by feel and hope I am holding it at the correct angle. Sometimes I put my phone on a camera tripod and hold that in order to get the phone camera out further away so the angle is better - but it remains guesswork as to IF the camera is aimed at all four hooves or not. But hopefully the slow motion videos are helpful to you despite their imperfections. I do know that the slow motion video of the footfall has helped me understand the four beat ambling gaits MUCH better - so I trust it will likewise help at least some others. May God bless your day!!
If you find errors of any kind on this page please kindly let me know. I am imperfect, just like you, and fully recognize I can make mistakes despite over five decades of experience working with horses. Please help me root any errors out of this page so that the information is totally correct and thus helps people learning about the four beat ambling gaits to learn accurately and avoid MUCH confusion. Thanks, I appreciate it.