Shows how much I know!

wpskier222 wrote:

Also to note, the differences are much more obvious when you see them in movement. Dizzy has a very short reach (how far out the front leg goes) whereas Mechta's is huge. His gait looks choppy, hers effortless.

Can you show a comparison? I'm curious

Okay, this took a bit to find, and the pix aren't the best and are both old, but I think it will illustrate what I'm getting at.

Mechta 10/15 (10.5 months):



Dizzy (6-7 months):



If you drop a line down from the nose, you'll see how Mechta's front leg actually extends out just barely past the tip of her nose, whereas with Dizzy, you can see his leg does not extend to that point, it is behind his nose. The is called reach, and has a lot to do with shoulder mechanics. If you look at their back legs, Mechta's extends further back, this is called drive. The effect of Dizzy's short reach is that his gait appears choppy, he's taking shorter quicker steps, and is also bouncier. Also look at the opposite side and you can see the coverage differences, see how Dizzy's paws are separated as to where they are hitting the ground, but Mechta's are almost in the same spot? Also, look at the distance on the chest between the two front legs, Mechta has much more extension, whereas Dizzy's are much closer together. He has gotten better as he has grown, but his gait still has the choppiness. Does that make sense?

Another shot of Dizzy at 8 months. You can see his reach and drive are better as he's a little more mature. He's still no Mechta though, and never will be. He's my goofy bud though.

Here is a link to the illustrated standard. If you look at page 19, you'll see info on movement.

I'm trying to find some drawings that show comparisons, but am having a hard time... Hopefully I can dig something up.

eddycaaa wrote:

Shows how much I know!

Lol, well take it with a grain of salt. I still consider myself a newbie at all this. A lot of times I can tell what I like, but can't say why.

Very cool, Jen! Makes me want to see what Mishka's gait looks like.

simplify wrote:

Very cool, Jen! Makes me want to see what Mishka's gait looks like.

I would love to see it! I was thinking about starting a different thread about movement, but I'm not sure if that would be redundant to the conformation thread.

I don't think it would be redundant. It's a fun way to educate people about specific breed standards.

Here's a visual update on Link. These are today.  I am very pleased with his development and his weight distribution right now.  

He got a bath Monday because he jumped into a mudpit in the mountains, and you can see that he is starting to blow his coat--notice the divot in his right thigh area.

Agreed. We could discuss movement without the confines of the standard, or we could discuss movement in light of the standard but without focusing on it. It can be a thing in and of itself, just focused.