Tennessee Walker vs Quarterhorse

Question
My 12 year old daughter and I are buying our first horses. We have been taking lessons and plan to trail ride as well as participate in 4H kinds of activities.  We have been told that Tennessee Walkers----even if they seem calm and gentle---tend to spook easily and are not safe for beginners or kids.  He considers them similar to Arabians.  What do you think, should we stick with quarter horses or do you have a particular breed you would recommend?  We have found individual mares in both breeds we like and feel comfortable on.  I would prefer a gaited horse, but our safety definitely comes first!  Thank you for your help!  Carol Morehouse

Answer
Carol,

I have never found TWH's to be especially spooky so I really don't understand why you are hearing that.  I, for one, am not especially breed loyal.  For what you want a horse of mixed background would work just as well as a breed horse.  If you are mare riders God bless you. I love my girls but have run into many people who don't like mares to ride.  They can be very opinionated but also affectionate and loyal to a fault.  For trail riding I am sure you would like the gaited horses better; they will spoil you for riding anything that it not gaited though.  Don't worry about the breed.  If you find horses you like and are comfortable with then go with those.  Use your gut feelings to tell you what is right for you.  I sort of assume you have no show aspirations aside from maybe 4H shows so almost anything would work for you.  Face it, any horse you ride if you ride very much you will fall off of. It goes with the territory.  I've fallen off so many times I lost count long ago.  It happens.  Just be sure you wear a helmet.  Like any sport, horseback riding has inherent risks.  I don't even think about them when I ride because I enjoy riding so very much.  Didn't worry about it when I went skiing or rode a motorcycle either.  Get horses you like and feel comfortable with and enjoy them!

Lyn