Types and Market Classes of Live Stock 465 



of the ears, in unison with the foot-falls. It is an all-day gait, easy 

 and comfortable to both horse and rider, and equal to six miles an hour 

 or more. It is, however, not as showy or attractive as the other gaits. 



The Three-Gaited Saddle Horse 



This type is also styled the "walk, trot, canter horse," and the 

 "park hack." This is the horse which conforms to English fashions, 

 whereas the five-gaited saddler is exclusively an American type. 



General appearance.— The walk, trot, canter horse usually has his 

 mane pulled and his tail docked and set, in accordance with English 

 fashion, whereas the five-gaited horse wears a full mane and tail. 

 Otherwise the two types have much the same general appearance. 

 Most three-gaited saddlers are American Saddle Horses which, for one 

 reason or another, are marketed as three-gaited horses. There are 

 also quite a number of walk, trot horses which are of Thoroughbred 

 breeding, and some have a strong infusion of Standardbred breeding. 

 In such cases, the head and tail are not carried so high, and there is 

 not the evidence of style in form and action which characterizes the 

 horse that is of American Saddle Horse breeding. 



Gaits. — This horse must show three gaits, and three only: the walk, 

 trot, and canter. It is as objectionable for a three-gaited horse to 

 show more than the gaits mentioned as for the five-gaited horse to 

 know less than five gaits. 



While many people have adopted the walk, trot, canter horse in 

 preference to the five-gaited type because they accept English horse 

 fashions as law, there is still another reason why the American type 

 with its five or more gaits is not favored by all riders. The reason is 

 that there is no advantage in having a horse with all the gaits unless 

 the rider is skillful enough to keep them distinct. If the rider is less 

 instructed than the horse, a sad confusion of paces is apt to result. 

 A well-mouthed, well-suppled horse with a good trot and a good canter 

 is more useful to the ordinary rider than is one of the highly accom- 

 plished gaited saddlers; hence the popularity of the three-gaited horse, 

 especially in the larger cities. Saddle horse breeders recognize this 

 state of affairs and annually send to market a large number of three- 

 gaited animals, as well as large numbers of five-gaited horses. 



Outside of the matter of gaits, the requirements for the five-gaited 

 and three-gaited types are so nearly identical that one discussion will 

 suffice for both. 



REQUIREMENTS OF THE SADDLE HORSE 



The essential points to be looked for in a saddle horse are (1) 

 beauty of conformation, (2) sure-footedness, (3) comfortable seat, (4) 



