From Wikipedia:
“The Missouri Fox Trotter is an American breed of horse with a unique four beat gait. It was bred in the Ozark Mountain foothills, and used by settlers who valued its smoothness.
“The breed is best known for its unique gait, known as the fox trot,a four-beat diagonal gait in which the horse appears to walk with its front legs and trot with its hind. The gait, however, is not a mixed patter of footfalls, it has a clear pattern of diagonal foot movement where the front foot hits the ground split-second before the opposite rear foot. The head shakes in unison with the rhythm of the gait. The tail perfectly balances the movements of the head. Because the horse has a four-beat motion rather than a two-beat trot, the gait is easy to sit. It is accompanied by an up and down head nodding. The horses, unlike some other gaited breeds, do not have high-stepping action, but rather a very smooth, comfortable ride. The fox trot can be maintained for great stretches of time, reaching speeds up to 12 mph.
“In the early 18th century, when pioneers came to the rugged foothills of Missouri from Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky, they soon realized that a horse with a natural four beat gait would be ideal for the rocky and forested land. Farmers selectively bred for the gliding fox trot by blending American Saddlebred, Standardbreds, and Tennessee Walkers with the Morgan, Thoroughbred and Arabian. An early breeding policy was to use horses that had reached fast running speeds.
“Today, the breed is still popular in Missouri, as well as elsewhere. There are over 94,000 registered horses in the USA, Canada, Austria, and Germany. They are very popular with forest rangers and pleasure riders.”
You can get more information at the breed association website by clicking HERE.
If you have problems seeing the video below click HERE
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