Weird dog gait - like an equine pacer

[lovey1121]

[QUOTE=Simkie;5814944]
Wow, sorry to hear that! Three generation pedigree OFA hips and elbows good or better? Just finishing a championship doesn’t, unfortunately, guarantee the dog is free of issues :([/QUOTE]

Yes, it was very sad- poor George had no idea why his front legs didnt work anymore. Just heartbreaking for his people, who were head over heels for him, slobber and all:no::no:

You’re so right about the CH not being any type of guarantee. I bet we all have some juicy stories…a new thread??

Re: rare breeds–my feeling is there’s a reason why they’re rare. :winkgrin:

[englishcowgirl]

I have a dog that I found that the vet and every gun dog guy we have met swears she is a wirehaired pointing griffon.She paces in the walk always. I have never seen her trot just a faster lateral gait. To run she kinda moves both front and backs together, like a hopping. Never had an issue with her, but it looks odd. She goes all day with us on long rides (10+ miles), no big deal. She never sits right more like a human, vet says there are no real issues and that she is just a weird dog. She is also cow hocked, in the FRONT end!!! Seriously, I’m scared to see what her parents were like. But her behavior is just as odd, and she has a beard. She is a very special girl…

[JumpQH]

Well, I tried posting here off my blackberry yesterday, and it’s not showing up! Anyway, thank you to all! This is very educational for me. I went to the vet today, but my normal vet was out of the office and will call tomorrow. I started seeing this recently, and don’t recall ever seeing it before. Again, I appreciate all the input, and we’re going to start from a medical point of view.

[irkenequine]

I take all 3 of my dogs on a long walk 2x a day…annnnd thanks to this thread, I NEVER noticed that they all do the pacing when they’re abotu to break into a trot. Thank you, COTH, for teaching me something new about my own animals

[Simkie]

I use the pace/trot thing to gauge how fast I am walking. I have to be moving at a quick pace to get Koa trotting. If she’s pacing, I am walking TOO SLOW

[sisu27]

My current Dobe and last Dobe both pace(d). Both big, leggy males but neither with any issues (other than the usual heart breaking heart problems).

It seems to be an in between gait for sure. If they slow they walk and if they speed up they break into a normal trot. Current guy is fairly correct other than being too big and is a fit machine. He out runs my thbd.

I don’t see it as anything to worry about if they are sound.

[SonnysMom]

A friend’s dog that came up from a down south kill shelter is a pacer. She always paces. She is black with a little roaning and a really curly tail. She actually looks to be part Basenji. The tail and the face structure match a Basenji.
I have know this dog since she was a puppy and I don’t think I have ever seen her trot. She is about 3 years old and perfectly sound. I forget what the rescue said she was for a cross.

[MunchkinsMom]

My Brittany paces. She has the cleanest hips the vet ever x-rayed. We took the rads of her hips because she was having hind end issues. Turns out it may be compressed discs in her back. I don’t know if that is the reason that she paces at the walk. I’ve watched her move for years now to see if she ever walks like the other dogs, and nope, she always paces.

[JumpQH]

I watched my girl real closely this morning. When we’re on hikes, she rarely walks - always does a pace. When she speeds up, she paces at a trotting speed, and will eventually break into a trot if we go faster. She doesn’t seem to be in any pain. I did take her to the vet yesterday to get her glands expressed, but the vet wasn’t in.

[maybedog]

I have a lab boxer mix that paces at the walk & trot! Very rarely does she walk or trot “normally” but when she does she will do a little skip & start pacing again. Every who comes to the farm notices it! Vet says it is because she has long legs and her hind legs are longer than her front. She is very fast a groundhog killer extraordinaire!!!

[shawnee_Acres]

I have a friend with a lab/great dane mix she paces at the “walk” and at the “trot”

[Cancara]

My GSD girl paces, but she has real back issues and is starting to feel her age.

[Chall]

Ive only seen it in dogs that were quite old and looked ache-y or otherwise not quite right. My 17 yr old cat will sometimes “camel” walk.

[paulaedwina]

My ridgebacks paced on walks as they aged. I figured it was a fatigue thing. They were likely just compensating for old bones. Yoshi, who is 11 years old now, will occasionally pace on a walk - I take it as fatigue.

Paula

[glfprncs]

I have 3 multi-cultural canine Americans…a 2 year old foxhound mix, an 8 year old fluffy and floppy eared 60 pound terrier mix and a 12 year old lab mix.

All three of them will pace when I’m walking at a 4 mph pace. I have to actually move it up to a jog in order for them to break into a trot. At a slower, 3mph pace, they become less lateral and do walk with a 4 beat walk gait.

I do find, though, that young pupster, James (the 2 year old), travels VERY wide behind and is noticeably cowhocked. I wouldn’t be surprised if he develops signs of hip displasia as he ages. I’m amazed that the eldest, TC, hasn’t had hip issues has he’s one that always splays his hind legs out behind him when he’s lying on the ground. You’d think after 12 years of that, those old hip sockets would be getting lose. That said, I’m envious that he has such flexibility at such an age. I wish my hips cooperated like that. He also travels quite narrow behind…if he were a horse, he would probably have to wear brushing boots.

On another ‘gait’ note…any of you notice whether your dogs run in a disunited canter type gait (like they’re cross cantering)?

[Simkie]

@glfprncs;5818601

On another ‘gait’ note…any of you notice whether your dogs run in a disunited canter type gate (like they’re cross cantering)?

I’ve only seen a true canter in my dogs, with very nice lead changes

[Melissa.Van_Doren]

I’ve had a series of rotties, and only the current one is prone to pacing. Sometimes it’s when he’s tired, but more often he seems to be seeking a faster-than-walk-but-not-as-fast-as-trot mode of motoring. He’s got the beautiful, ring-worthy, level trot required by the breed standard, and chooses that whenever he’s serious about traveling. But the pace will often show up when he’s interested in sniffing along a trail.

It’s been useful for teaching my SO about the differences in lateral and diagonal movement.

[Kat_Renee]

I have a 3 year old aussie mutt and he has always paced. It tickled me to see him do that when he was younger. There is nothing wrong with him - he is regularly seen by a vet.

On our walks, he always paces. For him, it is his most efficient gait for slower speeds. We walk between 3.5 and 4.5 mph. It’s not until I start jogging that he breaks into the trot or canter.

He will switch between the pace and trot. If he sees something interesting, he’ll trot. When he is just chilling, he paces.

When playing in the backyard, he hardly ever paces. Always trot or full out run

Around the house he paces too… it is easier for him to keep his balance on the tile.

[IFG]

My Standard Poodles (my older rescue who passed away sound), and my newer well-bred young dog pace when I am not going fast enough. If they are off-leash, they will trot, but if I am making them walk my speed, they will pace.

[allintexas]

My terrier mix always paces in between walking and trotting