A Walkaloosa is a horse with an appaloosa coat pattern and a smooth 4-beat saddle gait instead of or in addition to a trot. A Walkaloosa can be any percentage of any gaited horse breed and some percentage appaloosa color breed. Horses to be registered must also meet gait and coat color/pattern criteria. All 4-beat smooth saddle/easy gaits are accepted. All Appaloosa coat patterns are accepted as long as the horse is not grey or pintaloosa marked. Sabino is allowed unless deemed excessive white. 

Horses that meet breed criteria but not color or gait criteria can be registered with WHA-ID papers for ownership or breeding records and are eligible for upgrade to full papers if gait or color develop as the horse matures. All horses applying for registration are evaluated by photo and proof of gaitedness. I don’t represent the registry, but I worked with them on the planned website update as we all wanted to make sure the criteria that has always been there is clearly stated and accessible to Walkaloosa owners. The website work has been contracted out so hopefully it gets done soon!

I grew up riding Appaloosas and then discovered the TWH when I met my husband who owned a couple of both breeds. Our first Walkaloosa was a fence failure breeding and the resulting mare, though not gaited, was the best horse we had ever been around. We didn’t know then that a registry had just started, but we sure loved that horse for 34 years and have made it our life’s work to promote and breed Walkaloosa horses. To me a Walkaloosa combines the intelligence, sensibility, stamina, work ethic, thriftiness, and sturdiness of the Appaloosa horse with the refinement, puppy-dog temperament, outstanding balance and smooth saddle gaits of our American gaited horse breeds. Others prefer Spanish, Icelandic or other gaited breed Walkaloosas and I think that’s great too! We breed for what we like to do: mountain trails, endurance, and trail obstacles. We were advised to put our herd sire into reining horse training as he has the athletic talent, but we just like knowing how versatile Walkaloosas are and leave it at that. Besides, I’m probably getting too old to have a speed racking Walkaloosa, even though they do look like hecka fun!

No one knows for sure how spotted gaited horse came to be, but gaitedness has been seen historically in some individuals of many breeds that you might not expect. Appaloosas, Arabians, Quarter Horses to name a few. Some people have chosen to breed those gaited individuals to get more of them. Most of the horses originally registered to form the WHA were Appaloosas, but the registry allows the addition of other gaited breeds. Foundation Appaloosas are usually where the bloodlines are for gaited Appaloosa horses traditionally called Indian Shufflers. (Indian Shuffle is a generic term for gaited Appaloosa and I have seen Appaloosa horses that Stepping Pace, Saddle Rack or Foxtrot) 

The Appaloosa lines we use in our program have gaited Arabian, gaited Quarter Horse, and Standardbred way back in their pedigrees and if you go back far enough with any Appaloosa bloodlines you will find horses that were admitted based on color alone. So there is gait in the Appaloosa breed, but there is not a lot! Research statistics say 5% of Appaloosas may be strongly gaited and 10% may have some gait ability. That 5% is represented by a stallion with a Spanish body style and a gait with termino/paddling, which gives a hint where at least some of the gait in modern Appaloosas came from.

Genetics and conformation both play a part. Some Appaloosas have the genetics, but have been bred for a QH body style and are not built for gaiting no matter what their genetics say. Others from known gaited stock no longer have the genetics, but still have gaited horse conformation. (Think of those Spanish body-type Appaloosa you’ve seen.) Since Appaloosas are primarily a western breed and so few are gaited, many owners do not know how to definitively determine if their Appaloosa is gaited or not. I’ve seen many Appaloosas that were thought to be gaited but instead have a super smooth floaty trot with a lot of lift and reach and they are really easy to sit, but it is still a 2-beat trot. We own one and he has produced gaited foals with a well-gaited mare. He is also Spanish/Iberian body style to my eye. I’ve also seen Appaloosas gait when their unknowing owner wants to show me their “super smooth trot”.

Many people breed any solid color gaited horse to an Appaloosa because they want a beautiful gaited Walkaloosa. I wish it were that easy! 

Conformation and genetics are both huge players here. There are certain conformational attributes that support a horse’s ability to perform saddle gaits. Gaited breeds in general have short backs, sloped shoulders, rounded croups, and a balanced body. Pelvic angle, placement of the SI joint, and femur length all play a part in the individual’s ability to gait and the quality of the gait. (I recommend Brenda Imus’ video series on youtube for more about gaited conformation). 

Correct genetics are needed, too – for now at least that’s the DMRT3 gait gene. (If you’re a DNA nerd like me, please see the Genetics section for more complex information). So, if you have gait conformation and one copy of DMRT3 you will likely have a horse with at least one smooth saddle gait if the horse is fit, trained and sound. Referred to as an intermediate ability to gait by some DNA testing labs. If you have gait conformation, fitness, training, soundness and two copies of DMRT3 you will likely have a horse referred to as having an innate ability for saddle gaits. In our program these horses are naturally gaited at liberty in pasture and/or have multiple “gears” of smooth saddle gaits. 

I am not saying you only need one gait gene to get gait!!! Historically, breeding non-gaited Appaloosa to gaited horse has produced about 30% gaited offspring. Conformation again plays the biggest role here and some crosses have higher statistics. Could be the breed or it could be that some breeders just have a really good eye for gaited conformation. Some breeders breed a pacey gaited horse to a trotty Appaloosa and get a squared up Walkaloosa, but I have not personally heard of results much over the 30% average and we much prefer breeding gaited to gaited. One thing to bear in mind here is that some foals gait at birth and then not later in life. Even non-gaited foals sometimes pace during their first few weeks as they learn to master moving their legs at a walk and trot. In fact, the WHA prefers that horses be at least a year old before submitting proof of gait for registration or upgrading to full papers from ID papers.

Appaloosa coat patterns accepted by the WHA include Leopard, Blanket with Spots, Blanket without Spots (SnowCap), Snowflake, Varnish Roan, and FewSpot. Pinto/SSH patterns in addition to Appaloosa patterns are beautiful, but not registerable with WHA. They can be registered with the Pintaloosa registry. If you’re wanting to breed your solid color gaited horse for a Walkaloosa foal you’ll want to read the Genetics section. Color is easier to get than gait, but there are some definite hacks you need to know. Short answer here is: LP/LP, FewSpot, SnowCap Appaloosas are the 95% color producers.

I can’t emphasize enough that if you breed your nice gaited horse to an Appaloosa with a Quarter Horse type body style you are not likely to be happy with the results – and the majority of ApHC registered Appaloosa horses are just that body type. Find a registered Walkaloosa or an Appaloosa that is documented to be gaited and cross your gaited horse with that if you want the best chance of getting a Walkaloosa with color that really does gait. Make sure the horse carries no known horse diseases. And then only breed if your horse and that horse both have great temperament, sound conformation and intelligence.

The registry criteria are based on phenotype (what the horse looks like and does) and not genotype (what DNA testing says).

DMRT3 is a genetic mutation. There are likely other genes in play. There is a video documented stallion in Israel that has a stepping pace/amble gait and he is negative for DMRT3. He has exceptional conformation of the Iberian/Spanish style even though he is ApHC registered. I expect other DMRT genes will be discovered at some point, but for now we work with DMRT3 in our program. When it comes to gait, seeing is believing so ask for video proof and if you don’t know your saddle gaits have a saddle-gait knowledgeable person review the video for you. A hint to better see the gaits is to wrap the cannons of one front and one hind diagonal pair with bright vet wrap and video the horse for slo-mo playback and/or pause the video to see if each leg moves independently. (Good examples of saddle gaits with slo-mo and great explanations can be found on youtube- Brenda Imus Gait Spectrum) 

According to Capilet Genetics, who discovered and researched DMRT3 and developed the Synchrogait DNA test, DMRT3 affect the horse’s central nervous system and gives the horse the coordination to move each leg independently as is needed for 4-beat saddle gaits. That extra coordination enables some trotting and pacing breeds to move at high speeds in 2-beat gaits. Icelandics and Standardbreds have been researched for this DMRT3 effect. Again, conformation is the higher order of selection for gait(s) vs pace vs trot and must not be ignored when breeding. Depending on which lab you use for DNA testing, DMRT3 gait gene homozygosity can be shown as A/A, Gait/Gait, or +/+ for gait. Heterozygosity can be shown as C/A, Gait/n or +/- for gait. For more info on heterozygous vs homozygous DMRT3 please read above under It’s Conformation! It’s Genetics!

The LP gene causes white to overlay the base coat color in Appaloosa horses. With one copy it can appear as roaning (Varnish Roan) or a blanket with spots. (Note that Varnish Roan is different than standard Roan and there is not yet a DNA test for it. Varnish roan appears as irregular roaning that leaves the bony parts of the body solid and with the head roaning as well in the varnish pattern.) If the PATN1 gene is also present the white will overlay 70-100% of the body and spots will be visible with the presence of one copy of LP (Leopard pattern). 

Occasionally there are horses that express very little white and only have other Appaloosa characteristics such as skin mottling, visible white scelera and/or striped hooves. A heterozygous LP horse will pass their LP gene to offspring 50% of the time. This is problematic when breeding a 50/50 cross to a solid color horse as solid offspring, even if gaited, don’t have the visual appeal of a spotted Walkaloosa even though they have all the other great breed attributes. 

Then there are the LP/LP Appaloosas. These horses appear predominantly white or have a blanket without spots. They will pass LP 100% of the time and the offspring will have or develop one of the aforementioned coat patterns 95% of the time. PATN1 hides in LP/LP horses, but if/when passed it will create a Leopard pattern foal even when one parent is a solid color horse. Congenital Stationary Night Blindness is endemic in LP/LP horses and all Walkaloosa breeders should be aware of that. CSNB does not cause a horse to be completely blind and is not the same as Moon Blind. Horses can normally see at night almost as well as they can during the day. With homozygous LP/CSNB a horse can see at night about the same as a human does and like us it will vary by individual. These horses are managed according to any limitation. Though you will see breeders advertise their homozygous LP/PATN1 horses as 100% color/leopard producers, in actuality there are always anomalies or as yet unknown factors that don’t produce the expected result. Those breeders offering a colored foal guarantee should put it in writing what accommodation will be made if the genetics cue ball falls in a pocket.

Walkaloosas contain genetics from several horse breeds known to carry some devastating diseases that can be DNA tested for. PSSM, HYPP, HERDA for starters. The genepool of quality Walkaloosas and gaited Appaloosas is so small that all breeders should never breed any stock that has not been DNA tested as negative for the basic 5-Panel test at a minimum! Equine Recurring Uveitis and Ocular Squamos Cell Carcinoma are also present in higher levels in Appaloosa horse than other breeds. There are DNA test for these diseases, too. We use Etalon Diagnostics for their thoroughness, accuracy, innovation and quick return on results. Their $149 Mini Panel Plus give you results on over 25 horse disease as well as base coat colors, Appaloosa and Pinto patterns, known dilutions, grey modifier and the oh so valuable DMRT3 gait gene.

I have learned a lot in 38 years of breeding Walkaloosas, but I don’t know it all. I’m not The Expert and I’m sure I’m wrong about some things and have more to learn. And I’m grateful to all those who have taught me along the way. What I am is someone who fell in love with a Walkaloosa horse years ago and I have been blessed to live a life in which I am able to ride, own, breed, promote and protect what I believe to be one of the best all-around gaited horses breeds in the world. I’m always ready to talk with others about Walkaloosa horses and provide advice and counsel on breeding these amazing horses! All for the betterment of the breed and to pass along some of what I’ve learned before I ride off into the sunset. Please feel free to contact me through the Tenmile Walkaloosa page on Facebook. I look forward to hearing from you!