Page 116 - ShowSight - July 2019

Form Follows Function: The Straight Column...Part 7 BY STEPHANIE HEDGEPATH continued
too close to the body or elbowing out from the body, any of these common faults would break this column of support. You can see how the entire forequarter (A–shoulder, B–upper arm, C–foreleg, D–foot) is reaching forward in front of the dog, while at the same time is reaching underneath the body toward the center line. If, in the longer legged dogs, the legs did not cant in toward the center line, then the entire body would rock back and forth (lateral dis- placement) with each step, expending a lot of energy that would better serve the dog if it were being used to propel the dog forward. The faster the dog moves, the closer the foot falls toward the center- line of the dog. If the foot falls on the centerline under the dog, the dog is said to be single-tracking.
Figure 2. Column of Support, Going
The same can be said about the dog when viewed going away. See Figure 2.
As with the forequarters, the rear assembly of the dog also moves the dog forward most proficiently by using a straight column of support. In Figure 2a, the dashed black line indicates the center line of the dog. The pelvic girdle is seen with the upper thigh attached to the pelvis via a ball and socket joint. See Figure 2a. Hindquarter (A–upper thigh, B–lower thigh, C–hock (rear pastern), D–foot) is shown propelling the dog forward at a trot with a straight column of support.
Most of the faults of movement in coming and going are an attempt by the dog to put itself in some semblance of balance.
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Figure 2a. The Straight Column of Support in the Rear Quarter of the Dog.