Canine gait

The gait of a dog is its quality of movement. It is given a great deal of importance in the breed standard of some breeds, of lesser importance in other standards, and in some breeds gait is not described in the standard at all. A dog's gait is much similar to a horse's.

A dog judge must know the gait requirements in the Standard of the breed he or she is judging. The Miniature Pinscher, for example, must have what is called a hackney gait, reminiscent of the gait of a horse. In working small breeds such as the Miniature Fox Terrier, a hackney gait is a serious or disqualifying fault.

Types of gait

References

Bibliography

Canine

Canine may refer to:

Biology

Other uses

See also

Canine tooth

In mammalian oral anatomy, the canine teeth, also called cuspids, dog teeth, fangs, or (in the case of those of the upper jaw) eye teeth, are relatively long, pointed teeth. However, they can appear more flattened, causing them to resemble incisors and leading them to be called incisiform. They developed and are used primarily for firmly holding food in order to tear it apart, and occasionally as weapons. They are often the largest teeth in a mammal's mouth. Most species that develop them normally have four per mammal, two in the upper jaw and two in the lower, separated within each jaw by its incisors; humans and dogs are examples. In most species, canines are the anterior-most teeth in the maxillary bone.

The four canines in humans are the two maxillary canines and the two mandibular canines.

Details

There are four canine teeth: two in the upper (maxillary) and two in the lower (mandibular) arch. A canine is placed laterally to each lateral incisor. They are larger and stronger than the incisors, and their roots sink deeply into the bones, and cause well-marked prominences upon the surface.

Gait

Gait is the pattern of movement of the limbs of animals, including humans, during locomotion over a solid substrate. Most animals use a variety of gaits, selecting gait based on speed, terrain, the need to maneuver, and energetic efficiency. Different animal species may use different gaits due to differences in anatomy that prevent use of certain gaits, or simply due to evolved innate preferences as a result of habitat differences. While various gaits are given specific names, the complexity of biological systems and interacting with the environment make these distinctions 'fuzzy' at best. Gaits are typically classified according to footfall patterns, but recent studies often prefer definitions based on mechanics. The term typically does not refer to limb-based propulsion through fluid mediums such as water or air, but rather to propulsion across a solid substrate by generating reactive forces against it (which can apply to walking while underwater as well as on land).

Due to the rapidity of animal movement, simple direct observation is rarely sufficient to give any insight into the pattern of limb movement. In spite of early attempts to classify gaits based on footprints or the sound of footfalls, it wasn't until Eadweard Muybridge and Étienne-Jules Marey began taking rapid series of photographs that proper scientific examination of gaits could begin.

Gait (human)

Human gait refers to locomotion achieved through the movement of human limbs. Human gait is defined as bipedal, biphasic forward propulsion of center of gravity of the human body, in which there are alternate sinuous movements of different segments of the body with least expenditure of energy. Different gait patterns are characterized by differences in limb movement patterns, overall velocity, forces, kinetic and potential energy cycles, and changes in the contact with the surface (ground, floor, etc.). Human gaits are the various ways in which a human can move, either naturally or as a result of specialized training.

Classification

Gaits can be roughly categorized into two groups: the natural gaits that nearly every human will use without special training, and the specialized gaits which people train to use under specific conditions and situations.

Another classification system applicable to humans groups gaits by whether or not the person is continuously in contact with the ground.

Gait (disambiguation)

Gait may refer to: