and the deepest hock, you’re going to
sacrifice the balance and integrity of the
horse’s natural way of going. A horse
that is loping in the pasture carries
itself with ‘self-carriage’, in a way that
is comfortable and natural. It naturally
lifts its ribcage and back, or his ‘CORE’,
and uses its head and neck for balance.
However, for those who have never seen
THIS natural flowing movement, it can
be hard to visualise.
FROM THE AusQHA Rule Book
82.5 Western Gaits
The horse should be ridden at a speed
which is a natural way of going. The
head should be carried at an angle which
is natural and suitable to the horses
‟conformation at all gaits. Rules 82.6 to
82.10.
82.6 Walk – The walk is a natural, flatfooted, four-beat gait. The horse must
move straight and true at the walk.
The walk must be alert, with a stride of
reasonable length in keeping with the
size of the horse.
a) Poor walk – uneven pace and no
cadence. Has no flow and may appear
intimidated or appear to march;
b) Average walk – has a four-beat gait,
level top-line and is relaxed;
c) Good walk – has a flowing four-beat
gait, level top-line, relaxed and is
bright and attentive.
82.7 Jog – The jog is a smooth, groundcovering two-beat diagonal gait. The
horse works from one pair of diagonals
to the other pair. The jog should be
square, balanced and with straight,
forward movement of the feet. Horses
walking with their back feet and
trotting in the front are not considered
performing the required gait.
a) Unacceptable jog – cannot perform
a two-beat gait and has no flow or
balance in the motion;
b) Poor jog – hesitates in motion. Does
not keep an even and balanced motion
or a level top-line and may appear to
shuffle;
c) Slightly below average jog – average
motion but has negative characteristics such as: walking with hind legs,
dragging the rear toes or taking an
uneven length in stride with the front
and rear legs;
d) Correct or average jog – has a twobeat gait, a level top-line and a
relaxed appearance;
e) Good jog – has an average motion
with positive characteristics such as
balance and self-carriage while taking
the same length of strides with the
front and rear legs;
f) Very good jog – is comfortable to ride
while having a consistent two-beat
gait. The horse guides well, appears
relaxed and has a level top-line;
g) Excellent jog – effortless and very
efficient motion. Swings the legs yet
touches the ground softly. Confident,
yet soft with its motion while being
balanced and under control. Moves
flat with the knee and hock and have
some cushion in the pastern. Has
a bright and alert expression and
exhibits more lift and self-carriage
than the “very good jog”.
82.8 Extended Jog – When asked to extend the jog, it moves out with the same
smooth way of going as in the jog.
a) Poor extended jog – never lengthen
the stride and may appear rough
to ride.
b) Average extended jog – moves up in
its pace and appears smooth to ride.
c) Good extended jog – has an obvious
lengthening of stride with a slight
increase in pace while exerting less
effort and appears smooth to ride.
82.9 Lope – The lope is an easy, rhythmical, forward moving three-beat gait.
Horses moving to the left should lope on
the left lead. Horses moving to the right
should lope on the right lead. The horse
should lope with a natural stride and
appear relaxed and smooth.
a) Unacceptable lope – does not have
a three-beat gait. Has no flow, rhythm
or balance. Uncomfortable ride.
Horses travelling at a four-beat gait
are not considered to be performing
at a proper lope
b) Poor lope – appears to have a threebeat lope but has not lift or selfcarriage. The horse shuffles, has no
flow and bobs his head, giving the
appearance of exerting a great deal
of effort to perform the gait. Also
could be an uncomfortable to ride.
c) Slightly below average lope – has an
average motion but exhibits negative
characteristics like head bobbing, not
completing the stride with the front
leg and leaving the outside hock well
behind the horse’s buttocks.
d) Average lope – has a true three-beat
gait with a level top-line and very
little head and neck motion. He is
relatively straight (not over-canted);
guides well and has a relaxed
appearance.
e) Good lope – has an average motion
but exhibits positive characteristics
in his performance like self carriage,
a steady top-line, relaxed appearance
and is responsive to the rider’s aids.
f) Very good lope – has more lift and
flow than the average horse. Has a
strong but smooth drive from behind.
He may bend his knee slightly yet
still has a level top-line while exhibiting self-carriage