Balanced gait. - Page 1

Took us a while to get this picture, so I thought I'd post it :)

beautiful, do you mean by balanced the opposite of front over reach?

Ibrahim

Please explain Ibrahim, as I'm not too familiar with all these terms!  What is front over reach, is she doing it?

No she's not doing that, front reach is how far the front leg reaches forward when trotting, over reach is a term sometimes used to describe an overdone show GSD.
Correct angulation, long front upper arm with correct shoulder angle, good shoulder lay and balanced dog usually have very good front reach. American show line GSD is associated with the good reach and is sometimes critiqued by non-American show GSD enthusiasts as having over reach = over angulations etc. If Blitzen, Rik or one of the other more knowledgeable guys see this maybe he/she can throw more light on it.

Ibrahim

Your Mali has a balanced gait - Ibrahim has described that well. What I can tell from this photo is that  your dog is relatively straight on both ends and does not have a ground covering gait. She/he is what is called "short gaited" in the AKC world which may or may not be correct for a Mali. I don't know that breed standard. It would not be a good gait for a GSD. BTW you might be able to improve the reach on your dog if you teach her to gait with her neck extended so her head is held at about the same level as her topline rather that holding it so erect. That needs to be done a a loose lead.

This video illustrates  my idea of the correct side gait for a GSD. Notice that Dingo has a ground covering reach (front) and an equal follow through (rear). His topline remains firm and level with his neck extended and his head held at about the same level as his backline. The old terminology - he could carry a glass on water on his back and not spill a drop applies here. Most agree this is the best moving GSD ever filmed. Your dog would need to take at least 2 steps to cover the same amount of ground Dingo can cover with 1. His gait is also effortless and flowing. A short gaited dog like yours will tire out long before a dog like Dingo and he or she will not have a smooth, flowing gait; he will probably roll from side to side as speed increases. Again that may be correct for a Mali if it is not considered a trotting breed like the GSD. I suspect that would be just fine for a protection dog.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPJPE9oNN7A 

Ruger1, I agree...
And it is set to one of my favorite Enya songs, too.

the mal is a good example of balanced gait. It just means that the front matches the rear and neither end is having to compensate (lift high, crab, etc).  Really has nothing to do with how extreme the gait is.

http://www.thedogplace.org/SHOWDOG/reach-and-drive-proportion_Gammill-124.asp

Note the paragraph addressing a "carp back".



 

Thank you for your advice.  I'm new to the show ring and taking classes, although a lot of our time is spent just calming her down!

Excellent video, love his movement.  I'm not too sure what the "standard" is for the Mal's movement.  I'll look into it.
 
A few people have seen her move and have had great things to say.  I'll keep practicing!
Thanks again!