Tracking up question....

[TicTac]

Should all horses be able to track up easily or would some horses find it more difficult then others? Is it important that a horse tracks up in all three paces and does it mean that horses who find it difficult to track up in any pace have a problem?

 

[PonyIAmNotFood]

Not all track up easily or naturally, short coupled horses will find it easier to get the back end under and track up or over track, long backed horses will find it harder. It's pretty much conformation dependent. I ride a horse with a long back and short legs who it has taken 4 years to get engaged enough to track up but he'll never overtrack. If you have a horse who is built to naturally track up but doesn't, this could indicate a stiffness problem.

 

[NicoleS_007]

IMO i think its how the horse is built conformationaly and how it moves. I know alot of horses who dont track up in trot but have absolutely nothing wrong with them. Some lift and bend there pasturns more some look very square-ish in there action, some have a long straight movement some a shorter rounder action. Mine has a short round looking trot and tracks up were'as my previous ex racer had a longer striding lazy hindleg so he didnt track up. Canter, as far as im aware it doesnt matter weather theres an over track or not - mine over track. Walk, the bigger the over track the better!! I like to see a horse with at least a 1-2 hoof print over track.

 

[Booboos]

I would be inclined to think that a horse that can't track up (not overtrack, but at least track up) has a physical problem and/or an extreme muscle weakness. I would imagine that a horse's conformation would have to be pretty horrific to prevent it from naturally tracking up.