02/18/2025
History of the Missouri Fox Trotter
More than a century ago, the settlers and pioneers of the Ozarks needed a sure-footed, easy-traveling horse that could perform the varied and often grueling work their way of life demanded. Those requirements included plowing fields, hauling logs and working cattle in rugged, rocky Ozarks terrain. And when the day was done, that same horse had to serve as the family’s stylish buggy and riding horse.
As people migrated west from the hills and plantations of Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia, they brought with them their finest possessions, including their best saddle stock.
These breeds were largely Arabian, Morgan, and plantation horses from the Deep South. Later, American Saddlebred, Tennessee Walking Horse and Standardbred blood was added to the stock, resulting in a horse with a more pleasing appearance and disposition. This versatile animal, able to travel great distances at a comfortable, ground-covering gait (five to eight miles an hour), made the Missouri Fox Trotting Horse a favorite of the country doctor, sheriff, assessor and stock raiser.
Today, the Missouri Fox Trotting Horse is described as every person’s pleasure horse because of its gentle disposition and its comfortable ride. The breed is in demand for use in pleasure, show, versatility, trail riding, cross-country and endurance. Ninety percent of registered Missouri Fox Trotters are owned by people who use them for trail and pleasure riding as well as competition and endurance riding. The Missouri Fox Trotter is also used by hunters and National Forestry Service rangers for its endurance and surefootedness in rugged terrain; ranchers for its versatility and intelligence; and on Hollywood movie sets because of its gentle nature. And last, but certainly not least, the Missouri Fox Trotter is an acclaimed show horse, exhibiting great beauty and style in the ring.
In 2002, the Missouri Fox Trotting Horse was honored by being named the official state horse of Missouri.
Gaits of the Missouri Fox Trotting Horse
Although the Missouri Fox Trotting Horse is capable of doing many different gaits, there are three distinct gaits that are considered standard for the breed.
The Flat Foot Walk
A true flat foot walk is a four-beat gait in which each foot is picked up and set down in an even cadence. The rear end movement should be smooth and close to the ground without any snap or pop. With each stride, the back foot should reach forward and slide in as it is set down, over striding the track of the front foot. The head shakes in time with its rear feet and should be smooth.
The Fox Trot
The fox trot is a broken diagonal gait with a distinctive rhythm that is created by the horse moving its front foot a split second before its opposite rear foot. The fox trot is a smooth gait because the horse is in contact with the ground at all times. A horse that is fox trotting correctly will never have more than two feet off the ground at any given time. On both the front and back ends, the horse will set one foot down as it picks the other foot up and for a moment both feet will be touching the ground.
The exceptional rhythm of the fox trotting horse begins at the tip of the nose with the characteristic headshake and continues back through the ripple of the tail. The diagonal nature of the gait is also what makes the Missouri Fox Trotter extremely sure-footed.
The Canter
The canter is a broken, three-beat gait, and should be performed with collection. In the canter, the feet strike the ground in this sequence: (1) the outside rear foot, (2) the inside rear and outside front, simultaneously, and (3) the inside front. This produces the three-beat cadence.
The Missouri Fox Trotting Horse can perform an athletic lope or a collected rocking chair canter.
Source: MFTHBA website.
Pictured: Nancy Ann F-168 with Walter Esther up.
Picture was taken in the fall of 1944
