Page 158 - ShowSight - January 2020

Form Follows Function: Evaluation of Movement
BY STEPHANIE HEDGEPATH continued
Fig 2. Balanced Trots, Correct for Breed Depicted
Just what is balance? Balance is defined as the harmonious arrangement or relation of parts or elements within a whole. I love the quote used in the dictionary to dem- onstrate the use of the noun in a sentence: “In all perfectly beautiful objects there is found the opposition of one part to another and a reciprocal balance.” (John Ruskin) I think this aptly applies to the beautiful liv- ing sculpture that is the purebred dog. The length of neck should be just long enough to accomplish the function of the breed—a retriever with a too-short neck is out of bal- ance and lacks the ability to easily pick up and retrieve game and though not seen as often, a neck that is too long is more easily susceptible to injury. A herding dog that is out of balance in angulation front to rear will be unable to endure long days of mov- ing stock and will eventually break down.
Most breeds fall under the “golden rule of thirds”, commonly used in artistic com- position, in order to ascertain balance. A balanced animal is roughly one third head and neck ( See Figure 2 A-B), one third chest cavity (Figure 2 C-D) and one third length of leg (Figure 2 E-F). The equal length of these three areas represents vertical balance
in the dog. Dogs that have short necks or short legs do not meet the one third rule and are therefore out of balance. See Figure 2.
Each dog has the same number of cer- vical vertebrae: seven. The difference in length of neck from dog to dog is only in the size of the bones themselves. (A smaller dog has a shorter neck than a larger dog— but the Rule of Thirds remains the same proportionately.) A short neck on a dog is usually the result of a straight shoulder which is set forward and covering part of the neck. The neck is still seven vertebrae long, but the end that adjoins the back is hidden behind the shoulder blade.
A dog that seems too long in back com- pared to height most likely does not have a long back, but legs that are too short. This is a universal fault seen throughout many breeds. Shorter legs often make it look like the dog has a better side gait as they fling their front legs out in front at a frantic pace. But if you look underneath the dog you will see that the feet do not ‘meet’ underneath the body. Most breeds have the back foot being placed into the same spot that the front foot has just vacated. As with the neck, the dog’s back contains the same
number of vertebrae—thirteen thoracic (chest) vertebrae and seven lumbar (loin) as well as the three fused sacral vertebrae. Often, it is the shortness of leg that gives the illusion of a dog that is too long in back, with a back that is actually of the correct length. Again, the short legged breeds (such as the Corgis) do not fall under this rule of length of leg, but we also EXPECT them to be longer than tall.
Horizontal balance is determined in the front and hind angulation of shoulder blade to upper arm and hip to upper thigh. If a shoulder is described as well laid back, then the corresponding joint in the rear will be described to match. If the dog has a moder- ate shoulder layback, the rear will be mod- erately angled as well and the dog will be in horizontal balance. Balance is critical in an animal bred to fulfill a specific function, even if that function is being a lap dog with- out a “real” job.
In evaluating side gait, one first looks for a dog that has balance in the front and hind angulation of shoulder blade to upper arm and hip to upper thigh. The average dog’s shoulder (scapula) layback is approxi- mately 45 degrees to the ground. The hip (pelvis) angle is approximately 30 degrees to the ground. The shoulder to upper arm (humerus) angle is perceived to be approxi- mately 90 degrees, as is the hip to thigh angulation. I say “perceived” because the usual landmarks used to “measure” such angulation is the upper tip of the shoulder blade to the outer knobby edge (greater tubercle) of the upper arm and from there to the elbow (olecranon) are the points that are more easily palpated through the skin and muscles. With the advent of x-rays, both still and in motion, we have an even better idea of the exact angles needed for maximum efficiency in movement, but few of us have access to such machinery.
Questions and comments or to schedule a seminar can be directed to me at jimanie@ welshcorgi.com
Figure 2. Balanced Dog—Rule of Thirds—Verticle Balanc Figure 3. Horizontal Balance
150 • ShowSight Magazine, January 2020