Comparative study of similar phase support in diverse movements of the horse

Abstract

The Author, after referring to an already published study of the periods of support and suspension in the various gaits of the horse, states that his attention was drawn to the existence of similarities between the periods of support and suspension in the various types of locomotion. The notation alone, though it represents graphically the phases of support and suspension of the limbs, is inadequate to distinguish the various types of locomotion. The author, therefore, undertook to interpret the films taken by Special Zootechnics Department of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine showing animals in slow motion (at the rate of 64 exposures a second), and made the tracings that illustrate this paper. The tracing were grouped according to the number of limbs in contact with the ground, as follows: monopedal support (posterior or anterior); bipedal support (lateral or diagonal); tripedal support (anterior or posterior); quadrupedal support and period of suspension.