Tuxedodog Posted June 24, 2014 Report Share Posted June 24, 2014 My husband was tossing the ball for Charley and I realized that he "paces" like a Standardbred horse. This carries over at all speeds, he walks left front, left rear etc. Even when he is running, you can see that he moves laterally. Is this usual? I have never had a dog move this way. We are coming up on our first got day in August and I can't believe how far along he has come. We just started a 4 week course on Agility for Fun. In his intro level focus and control class, he was afraid of the dogs and the instructor couldn't get near him, now he has a lot more self confidence. There was an altercation where one of the dogs slipped its leash and went for another dog. Charley just sat down next to me and waited for it to be over. He still has a few weird quirks, when he brings a ball back, he puts it behind you. We just have to wait him out to put it in front, but you would think he would have caught on by now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sekah Posted June 25, 2014 Report Share Posted June 25, 2014 The way I understand it, pacing is a lazy style of moving. Some dogs simply pace frequently and can be resistant to other methods of movement. The moving laterally while running seems quite odd. See if you can take a video while someone else moves him at varying speeds. It sounds suspect enough that if I were in your shoes I'd probably take him to a vet who specialized in rehab/movement, or a rehabilitation specialist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted June 25, 2014 Report Share Posted June 25, 2014 I sometimes find it hard to really be able to see that the normal walking gait of a dog is not really a pace (where the two legs on one side move simultaneously, then the two on the other side) but rather a true walk (where the left hind leg moves slightly before the left fore leg, and then the right hind leg slightly before the right fore leg). So without a video, particularly one that could be viewed at a slower speed, it might be hard to tell if he is truly pacing at the walk speed or truly walking. If he does not trot (diagonal legs moving in unison) or run (a three-beat or four-beat gait like a horse, left hind leg first, then right hind leg with the left fore leg moving when the right hind does or just after the right hind does, followed by the right foreleg), but actually paces, I would probably have him checked just to be sure at his next vet visit. I would tend to be more worried if this was a change in gait and movement rather than something that he's been doing all along. I believe I have heard it said that for a dog to pace rather than trot or run could be indicative of a neurological issue or another problem (like something conformational) but I haven't found anything to corroborate that so I could be imagining it. However, pacing can be common in pups and youngsters that haven't yet developed their normal gaits and are in transition in terms of growth as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tuxedodog Posted June 27, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 27, 2014 I was hoping to hear it was just an alternate way of moving, no big deal. We have a vet visit coming up so I will get some decent video and show the vet and ask a lot of questions. Right now I am wishing that my former horse vet treated small animals, she has a really good eye for movement. I will see what I can get this weekend and then with some advice on how to post it, I would appreciate any feedback. Charley just turned 3. It wasn't really obvious that he moved differently until I was sitting in a low chair seeing him from the side, rather than standing up and watching him run out after his ball. As for conformation problems, he looks pretty normal. We have no expectations of him to do anything competitive, 2 weeks into our 4 week agility for fun, I can see that is not his thing, and it doesn't matter - we stress the for fun part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted June 27, 2014 Report Share Posted June 27, 2014 I'm glad to hear your approach to agility with him is about fun since he doesn't seem very interested in it or happy doing it. My Celt was like that initially, even to the point of wanting no part of the agility training (we did it for fun in a casual class that did stress safe and enjoyable technique but not a stress on future competitive agility). Once I took any pressure off and lightened up *myself*, he eventually decided it was fun and we have done a bit for enjoyment every now and then since then. So sometimes just kicking back and letting the dog decide to enjoy without any pressure (and for some dogs, "cheerleading" or a lot of encouragement is taken as pressure) may make a difference in whether or not he enjoys it more. Video is helpful, and check it out with your vet at your next visit. Some vets are not that into movement (as you've noted) so you might want to be open to another opinion if need be. Also it might be best to let your dog demonstrate his gaits for the vet as well as having video. The nice thing about video is that there is not any of the anxiety that a vet visit might provoke that could affect his action. Best wishes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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