Tennessee Walking Horses & Arabian Horses

At Walkapaca Farm we  have several horses. They are all Tennessee Walking Horses, with the exception of our one Arabian horse, Ally. When there is free time to be had and the weather is favorable, you can find us out enjoying the many Uhwarrie National Forest horse trails with our horses. They are another joy to have and a pleasure to ride. There is nothing like the smooth gait of a Walker… and the personality of an Arabian.

The Tennessee Walking Horse

The Tennessee Walker or Tennessee Walking Horse is a gentle and comfortable riding horse. The breed was originally bred in the Southern United States to carry the owners of plantations around their lands. (A closely related breed is the Garrett Walking Horse.) Their unique four-beat “running walk” is especially comfortable to ride, making the breed a well-suited trail companion. The breed is rarely seen in any of the sport horse disciplines; however, they are good for trail riding because of their smooth gaits, stamina and easy temper, and are also seen in Western riding disciplines and in harness.

 
The Tennessee Walking Horse has a reputation for having a very good disposition. It is a calm and easygoing breed, typically easy to train. While the horses are famous for flashy movement, they are quite hardy, popular for trail and pleasure riding as well as show.

Although many Tennessee Walkers, as they are commonly known, are black, chestnut, sorrel, bay, or champagne. Other colors patterns such as roan and pinto are common. Recently, the breed registry began to recognize the sabino pattern, and it must be noted that many horses registered in the past as roans were, in some cases, sabinos. Walkers are generally 15 to 17 hands tall, but can range from 13.2hh to 18hh. Weight is generally between 900 and 1200 pounds.

In conformation, the Walker is a tall horse with a long neck and sloping shoulder. The head is traditionally large but refined in bone, with small well-placed ears. The horse has a fairly short back, short strong coupling, and an elongated stride. In the show arena, Walking horses are known for their gliding running walk and are usually shown with long manes and tails.

The History of the Tennessee Walker

The Tennessee Walker originated from the Narragansett Pacer and the Canadian Pacer. In the early 1800s, these two breeds were blended by Tennessee breeders who were looking for a horse that could handle the mountainous terrain of the area. Confederate Pacer and Union Trotter blood was added during the Civil War, creating the sturdy Southern Plantation Horse (aka the Tennessee Pacer). Breeders later added Thoroughbred, Standardbred, Morgan, and American Saddlebred blood to refine and add stamina to their gaited horse.
In 1885, Black Allen was born. By the stallion Allendorf (from the Hambletonian family of Standardbreds) and out of a Morgan mare named Maggie Marshall, he became the foundation sire of the Tennessee Walking Horse breed.

The breed became popular due to their smooth gaits and incredible stamina. It was common for farmers to hold match races with their Walkers, who they also used for plowing fields. Even after the coming of the automobile, Tennessee communities kept their Walkers to manage the poor roads of the area. The Walkers began to gain a reputation as a showy animal, and breeders sought bloodlines to produce refined, intelligent, flashy horses.

The registry was formed in 1935. The stud book was closed in 1947, so every Walker after that date has to have both parents registered to be registered themselves.



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