# Considering this Paso Fino, thoughts?



## secuono (Jul 6, 2011)

Hey all. I'm thinking of checking out this guy when DH and I go down for a trail ride at their farm. 

Said to be a Paso Fino, no papers. 11 year old gelding, 14.1h tall, green broke. 

"Could make a great trail horse with just a little work. He's very friendly and super sweet!"

I need another horse like a hole in the head, IDK why, but I'm drawn to him. Lol

Anywho, could possibly be a mount for DH in the future, have a trainer to work with him. Not a gaited trainer, but we can work on that later.

General thoughts on his build & said breed?

It won't let me upload pictures.....I'll try again...


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## secuono (Jul 6, 2011)

Nope, it's being a crapshoot....
So let's try a link to an older, public ad....
Sorry guys, IDK what this forum's problem is all of a sudden. :frown_color:


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## BlindHorseEnthusiast4582 (Apr 11, 2016)

It's hard to tell much of anything from those pictures, can you get better conformation shots?

His legs look weird in those pictures, but I suspect it's his stance/the angle of the photos. The rest of him looks okay, though I suspect he's overweight (may just be me), and I'd be worried about the issues that come with that.
@knightrider has pasos, she may be able to help you out here


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## JCnGrace (Apr 28, 2013)

I thought they looked wonky too.


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

how did you try to post the photos? 
copy and paste? using a URL from photobucket? uploading from your own computer?

I always use the last method, and it always works, but, with the recent issues the forum had, I wonder if it's affecting the image manager function.


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## Kaifyre (Jun 16, 2016)

I tried to post pictures from my computer yesterday and nothing happened. It's the first time that's happened to me so I'm assuming it's the site.

-- Kai


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

He *is* overpriced for training & complete refreshing needing done....
Unregistered and I'm questioning total lack of any muscle makes me leery...
However, he looks amazing if those are recent pictures of still a pretty sleek coat...
You need to see him in person to truly evaluate him fairly...the pictures do him no justice.

There is a Paso Network throughout North America called ProPaso. 
Look at what they have in your area or that can be shipped in.
I have dealt with the one based in Florida several times and the woman who runs this one is incredible matching horse to rider...

Paso are a incredible trail ride, but very different than any other non-gaited breed.
They have a great "GO" speed....
If you are planning on "mixing" your herd consider that seriously.
My friends have gaited, Paso and MFT...my 15.2+ Quarter needs to jog to keep up with the walk of her 14 hand Paso.._.Beware!_

Enjoy the search.
:runninghorse2:...
_jmo..._


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## knightrider (Jun 27, 2014)

Well, I think he's cute. We need @4horses to comment on his legs as she is the expert on that.

I have to say that most Pasos are not for the faint of heart. The saying is they are "Hyper little ponies with great long names you can't pronounce". Quite a few Pasos are really zingy and fizzy. They are tons of fun for an experienced rider because all that zing and fizz doesn't go anywhere--they just like to dance along and be happy. But intimidating to a timid or inexperienced rider. I own 4 basically quiet Pasos, two of them let anyone ride them. One of those, Tico, likes to motor on--well, they all like to motor on--they like to GO. But Tico has no patience with a timid person mounting him. He gives the rider about 30 seconds to get on and if they hop around on one foot, shifting their weight around, and get back off, then he won't stand any more. Once the rider is on, Tico is, as we call him, "The World's Greatest Pony" and has taught about 12 kids to ride over the years. 

Pasos tend to give up easily, which makes them fairly easy to train. There are so many abuse cases of Pasos in Florida because they suffer abuse and keep on trying, which Arabs and Thoroughbred don't. I have been told they tend to be "one person" horses but mine all allow other people to ride them easily. I've also been told by Paso people that Pasos don't buck, but they can, and will, from time to time. I've also been told that they rarely spook, but I have one big-time spooker and the other three--almost never spook.

Some have an amazing smooth gait and some don't. Just about all of them walk really really FAST, about twice as fast as a quarter horse, and two of my 13 hand Pasos outwalk any other breed. Often you spend a trail ride by yourself way out front circling around a lot if you ride with non-gaited horses. 

Just like with any horse, if you don't know what you are doing and try to train, you may end up with a mess. Because they are hyper and zingy, you may not feel comfortable training a horse like that.


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

He looks very much like my Paso, who is about 9 years old and 'green broke' was pushing it. He's also been badly abused at some point and is a huge project. Definitely go ride him before you make a decision, and get some better photos. You can't tell much from those. If you ride with non-gaited people, a Paso may be very frustrating as like others said, they outwalk non-gaited breeds. 

Yes, they can buck. They can be spooky. They tend to push down fear until they can't handle it anymore and explode if they've been mishandled. My guy is an exercise in frustration sometimes, but he is really coming along now and I enjoy the challenge. He's a blast to ride, too, but finding a saddle that fits him well has been an exercise in futility so far. See what you can find out about him. Have the current owners had him long? Where'd they get him? The 'could be a good horse with some work' line makes me leery, but maybe he's just been a pasture ornament for several years and a couple of weeks of work will have him shaped up.


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## secuono (Jul 6, 2011)

tinyliny said:


> how did you try to post the photos?
> copy and paste? using a URL from photobucket? uploading from your own computer?
> 
> I always use the last method, and it always works, but, with the recent issues the forum had, I wonder if it's affecting the image manager function.


From my phone. None of the pics would upload, I only use ones from my phone, but the forum was being a turd.


Looks like someone fixed it for me, thanks!


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## secuono (Jul 6, 2011)

SilverMaple said:


> He looks very much like my Paso, who is about 9 years old and 'green broke' was pushing it. He's also been badly abused at some point and is a huge project. Definitely go ride him before you make a decision, and get some better photos. You can't tell much from those. If you ride with non-gaited people, a Paso may be very frustrating as like others said, they outwalk non-gaited breeds.
> 
> Yes, they can buck. They can be spooky. They tend to push down fear until they can't handle it anymore and explode if they've been mishandled. My guy is an exercise in frustration sometimes, but he is really coming along now and I enjoy the challenge. He's a blast to ride, too, but finding a saddle that fits him well has been an exercise in futility so far. See what you can find out about him. Have the current owners had him long? Where'd they get him? The 'could be a good horse with some work' line makes me leery, but maybe he's just been a pasture ornament for several years and a couple of weeks of work will have him shaped up.


They get horses in to train and resell or to try and add to their trail riding program. 

I've been writing down a bunch of questions to ask and things to check about him when I go down there next week.


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## SwissMiss (Aug 1, 2014)

knightrider said:


> Just about all of them walk really really FAST, about twice as fast as a quarter horse, and two of my 13 hand Pasos outwalk any other breed. Often you spend a trail ride by yourself way out front circling around a lot if you ride with non-gaited horses.


It takes a while (and good training) to get them to "slow down" and learn to slow-walk with non-gaited horses... Or you end up like me at our last ride, when my Peruvian tried to mimic the faster steps of the Paso (with her much longer stride) and she didn't get the idea why we were so much faster - first time riding with that particular horse:wink: 



knightrider said:


> Because they are hyper and zingy, you may not feel comfortable training a horse like that.


 Yes, they are hot and seem often like fire-breathing dragons, but often it is simply bluff


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## Smilie (Oct 4, 2010)

Isn't that hotness part of the "brio' ?
I know someone that ran a trail riding business in the Crowsnest pass, using quite a few pasos,and once well broke with miles on them, seem to be good for most riders
She sold one to someone I used to ride with, on group trail rides with our light horse association, and that rider is doing great with the horse, although she is far from a n expert rider. She has a bad back, that needs surgery,thus the switch


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

I think if the Paso is well-bred as a pleasure horse and not from Fino show lines, and well-handled from the start, they make suitable horses for nearly any rider. The problem is that they are generally forgiving, sweet horses and seem to attract some really abusive owners and harsh training methods, and if you get one of those, you're in for a whole new ballgame and some of those horses can be fixed, some can't.


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## 4horses (Nov 26, 2012)

I can't tell much from those pictures, but he looks good to me!

Even Pasos from show lines won't necessarily be super crazy. My paso Florian is very forward and has "Brio" but certainly has a decent head on his shoulders. He will even slow walk if you ask him too- his prior lack of a slow walk was a training issue. Given everything he has been through, I expected a lot worse. He isn't very spooky either. He is forward, not spooky. Most of his fears and "issues" were created by humans. 

The energy level of a Paso can be intimidating. Florian will gallop (with tiny strides) in an arena, and it can be scary because you start to wonder "is this horse going to stop when I ask?" but he does have a good whoa on him and he gets better with every ride. He has plenty of nervous energy, but that energy tends to go forward. He will happily ride 5 hours a day with plenty of energy for the next day. No buck to him, no rearing, and so far not much spook.

I enjoy riding him because he does not have to "look" at everything. My paint mare and even my Fox Trotter are constantly on the "lookout" on trails."Oh that tree looks scary to me... I will pass it but I'm going to stare at it the entire time, and maybe I will spook when i get next to it."

With Florian he mostly just ambles along, and doesn't have to stare at things. We have ridden next to traffic and even past pigs and he doesn't react. But that is just him. He is also now herd "boss" which may have something to do with his no-nonsense attitude.


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## secuono (Jul 6, 2011)

Passed on him.


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