Rocking Chair Canter 2009

The rocking chair canter of the Tennessee Walking horse is a collected and elevated, 3 beat gait where the diagonal pairs must land together for correctness. Unbalanced and over-ridden canters produce a lateral, four beat gait that is incorrect.
Of note is how their natural looseness combines with the use of their head and neck to add loft and elevation to their collected canter. This combines to produce a noteable headnodding action that is completely natural and fluid.
The collected canter takes tremendous strength for upward lift that is best developed over weeks and months to avoid over-strain or injury.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• rocking chair canter
• tennessee walking horse gaits
• canter
• gaited canter
• TWH canter
• TWH
• lope

[monette570]

Beautiful! I cannot get mine to canter that slow. What would you advise?

[raprhowe]

@monette570 Train the deliberate, slow takeoff using a 10 meter circle and keep the tempo slow. If the horse tries to throw themself forward they will loose their balance and get strungout, pacey and 4 beat rather than the upward lifting of the correct 3 beat canter. I ask my guys to drop their head just before I ask for the canter. This helps put them into correct posture.

[howetheywalk]

An elegant, balanced rocking chair canter is executed with a more neutral and relaxed topline than the flatter lopes or canters. It is slower, more deliberate and the entire skeletal structure of the horse is in a more orthopedically sound posture than when we see high headed and flat canters. Those fast and flat canters often border on 4 beat gallops rather than balanced and effortless 3 beat gait. Similar to the posture of a pirouette the horse remains collected and balanced.

[howetheywalk]

I will honestly state that this is a very natural and "relaxed" movement. A TWH naturally uses their head and neck in greater counterbalance at all gaits, which enables them to stride bigger and deeper with their hindquarters, adding balance and brilliance. They quite simply use their head and neck to assist the forehand lightness and a reaching hind. Like us swinging our arms as we walk its a natural counterbalance, relaxed and effortless. Once learned, they *prefer* the balanced RC canter.

[horsebabyhehe]

i openly admit i know nothing of TWHs. i've ridden one once and it was very unpleasant (not blaming the breed just this particular animal) while watching this video i became curious. do the TWHs develop arthritis in their neck/spine after performing these extreme head bobbing movements for years and years? it looks very uncomfortable even to watch. and do these animals perform this same movement without a rider? say at liberty in an arena or pasture? if not how is it a natural gait?

[MsChiefJoseph]

My horse does this gait by itself. He is not as yet been ridden and loves cantering and does it collected. Greetings from Germany.

[howetheywalk]

It's actually a blast to ride, and my horses love this gear. Once they learn the balance to execute this collected and controlled canter it becomes very effortless and they readily go into it. Much easier on them than the fast and flat gallopy canters.

[HavvahartKL]

am i the only one who thinks the rocking chair canter looks not only uncomfortable but unnantural? I know its a natural gait but it still throws me off...

[superdeelite]

@howetheywalk

Yeah, the horse I was riding did it when I just wanted him to canter!

lol.. it took some effort to get the long stride...lol.....

[howetheywalk]

I know, I LOVE this ride. Its a sweet way to move... really fun. The horse, once he learns, finds it very effortless to do.

[superdeelite]

Just 2 weeks ago I did that kind of canter :)

Boy, its so much fun!

It's as easy to sit as the walk!