Confirmation refers to the structure of the dog. The structure of its paws, legs, spine, chest, shoulders, neck and head and the relative proportions and angulations compared to each other.
The confirmation of each breed has been selectively bred to produce different desired traits including speed, coordination, stamina, flexibility, strength, stamina, mental aptitude and agility. The breeding may be for function, sports or for show.
Posture is how your body adapts and manages compared to its confirmation. It is how the canine aligns itself to manage the stresses and strains of different confirmation, daily life, work, sport, nutrition, injury, orthopaedic conditions, pain, disease or illness.
Confirmation can not be altered but poor postural alignment can be resolved or improved depending on the underlying cause.
The confirmation of different breeds needs to be considered in the choice of any tasks that you wish them to perform. A Corgi would not be considered an ideal breed for any sport-related tasks though may be more desirable for cattle herding; they were bred low to the ground to avoid the hooves of the cattle and had a strong temperament to nip at their heels if they weren't moving. Using dogs for tasks not ideal for their confirmation may cause postural strain and may contribute to injury.
Toffee is my own dog. She loves Agility https://www.topdogtrainingacademy.co.uk/, Scent Hurdles https://www.scenthurdlinguk.co.uk/and Barn Hunt https://www.facebook.com/barnhuntuk/
Square stand – thoracic limbs well-positioned perpendicular to the Ground.
Rear limbs with hock perpendicular
Some weight shift forward due to luring.
Sit
Forelimbs forward of scapula with a wide BOS
Mild rounding of Lsp
Pelvis posteriorly rotated
Fast drop into sit – tends to step or move legs towards midline before lowering
Narrow rear BOS going into sit and steps out on the stand
Down
Externally rotating from hip on decent
Good push back up to stand
Neutral spine maintained – no obvious rotation
Toffee is well proportioned according to her confirmation as a Show cocker spaniel.
I would consider that she has a normal scapular/humeral ratio with a 30 degree scapula angle.
Her thoracic limbs are perpendicular to the ground and she has a medium width chest and a normal front line.
Her pelvic limbs have a moderate angulation when viewed laterally though from the rear appear to have mild external rotation (again this may be due to her reaching forward because of the luring).
She has a moderately long back a straight top line and a tucked-up underline. She has symmetrical musculature though may have some sartorious and piriformis tension on her left.
The rounding of the lumbar spine, posterior rotation of the pelvis and leg adjustment during sit suggest some weakness through the core, gluteals and quads.
Since Toffee was around a year old I have noticed her occasionally skip with her right hind limb. She has been assessed by a Vet and they were not concerned that there was any underlying pathology. Toffee is doing regular strengthening exercises under the Canine Conditioning Academy https://canineconditioningacademy.co.uk/and who I am studying with and she has a weekly massage with Fiona George https://www.k9-massageguild.co.uk/therapistregister/fiona-george/. She is improving weekly and I hope that she will be on her 'A' game soon.
Comments