As a horse lover, I appreciate breeds that have a naturally smooth gait. When I first came across this horse, it was one of the things that really was appealing to me. The Paso Finos are naturally gifted riding with a nice smooth gait.

In case you don’t know, a horse’s gait is the way that it moves. In determining a horse’s gait, you look at the pattern, speed, positions, and the sequence of steps that a horse takes while it is moving. The Paso Fino is special in the fact that it has a unique pattern of foot movements that give it a very smooth ride. You won’t see this horse bounding its rider up-and-down as it moves.

You can hear the individual hooves in Paso’s 1-2-3-4 gait as the horse moves. It kind of reminds me of the riderless horse that rides at the funerals of presidents when they die. Granted it is different, but in my mind it has a stately feel to it. When riding a Paso Fino horse, it almost makes me feel like royalty.

Called an “ambling” gait, the Paso’s gait is a intermediate gait that is faster than a walk but slower than a canter. As its feet walk, you will notice they move in what is called a “lateral” motion where the front and hind hooves move in sequence to one another.

In the Paso Fino gait, there are names for the 3 speeds to its gait. Listed from slowest to fastest, there is the paso fino, paso corto, and paso largo. There is also another one referred to as the Paso Llano and is unique to the Peruvian Paso.

There are many competitions that show the excellence in Paso Fino training. In competition, performance Paso Finos are much more animated in their leg motions and much faster while keeping their 4-beat gait. It is really a sight to see. To many, the gait looks like a well orchestrated hat dance by the horse… and I guess you could say that is true. All I can say is simply amazing.

Even if you’re not looking to get started in Paso Fino competitions and just need a good horse to ride, the Paso Fino makes an excellent horse to own. Have fun and go ride a Paso!

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