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Temporal variables of the canter of the Tennessee Walking Horse

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2007

RK Splan  and
HB Hunter
RK Splan*
Affiliation:
Department of Animal and Poultry Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
HB Hunter
Affiliation:
Department of Animal and Poultry Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
*
*[email protected]
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Abstract

Temporal stride characteristics of the canter were compared between performance-shod (PS) and light-shod (LS) Tennessee Walking Horses, which generally differ in training and shoeing methods. Four consecutive strides for ten PS and ten LS horses were filmed (30 Hz), and frame-by-frame analysis performed to determine stride duration and individual limb stance duration. Also analysed was the percentage of stride duration devoted to single, bipedal or tripedal limb support. Footfall sequence for PS was trailing hind (TrH), leading hind (LdH), trailing fore (TrF) and leading fore (LdF), whereas footfall sequence for LS horses varied, with the majority of LS performing a sequence of TrH–TrF–LdH–LdF. Stride duration was greater for PS. As a percentage of stride duration, PS demonstrated greater duration of TrF and LdF, while LS demonstrated greater LdH duration. Hind and fore single limb support, and tripedal support, were greater for LS; however, PS utilized bipedal support to a larger extent than LS. Hind or forelimb bipedal support was demonstrated only in PS, while only LS demonstrated lateral bipedal support. Thus, while both performance- and light-shod Tennessee Walking Horses perform the canter, temporal variables for this gait differ dramatically between the two groups.

Keywords

kinematicslocomotiongait analysis
Type
Research Article
Information
Equine and Comparative Exercise Physiology , Volume 1 , Issue 1 , February 2004 , pp. 41 - 44
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2004

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