One of the many good discussions at the Deerhound Club education day was about pacing.

To help my understanding I've looked into some additional opinion.

Pacing is a natural gait (about the same speed as trotting or slower) often used to conserve energy as it is less energy sapping or when a dog is fatigue. It's seen often is huskies for example and is used to rest muscles weary from trotting and catering. The dogs then use a lateral movement to relieve strain. Pacing is when the paws on one side of the dog set down together and often longer legged dogs use the pace footfall sequence in their slowest speeds.

There is also a pace-like walk which is an intermediate gait between the walk and the pace. All long legged dogs use it or the pace sequence in slow travel. The footfall sequence is the same as the walk but the rhythm is different. Often I find that if you set off too slowly in the show ring the dog can start with a pace-like walk which continues.

Pacing though does not work in the show ring and is discouraged as this is not the gait that dogs are assessed at.

However, although pacing is a natural gait, sometimes pacing is the result of injury or strain in the loin area, or it can be due to too much arch in the back, which restricts action of the croup muscles. A dog will move in the way which is easiest for him, whether it be to alleviate pain, or because of habit resulting from poor confirmation.

Pacing can also occur to avoid interference. A lot of dogs including Deerhounds need moderately more length than height at the withers, in order to be able to coordinate drive from the rear with reach from the front. A dog that is too short usually lacks angulation in one end or the other and often in both. Sometimes, if rear angulation is better he may become a habitual pacer to keep the hund feet from stepping on the front.

In addition mature dogs that are 'squarely' built, but tend to stand a bit lower at the withers than at the croup, often develop a natural tendency to avoid interference by pacing, rather than trotting.

Some information drawn from The New Dogsteps, by Rachel Page Elliott and K9 Structure and Terminology by Edward Gilbert and Thelma Brown.

Hi Elise,thats really interesting stuff! We see something very similar in horses and ponies,where a free movement and proper extension of the front legs,and the placing of the hind legs right up and under the body until rear and front hooves almost meet in the middle is desired.
With horses this can be taught over time,by placing poles on the ground at set distances and trotting over them. Once this is learnt the poles can be taken away and the animal continues to move as if they were still there.
Do you use a similar trick with dogs?

Is that how you get that extravagant show pony movement, Hairybeasty? I always wondered.

As far as the show ring's concerned, you really don't want your Deerhound to pace - it's most unsightly and makes them look like hairy grey dromedaries. My first Deerhound was rather given to pacing if I moved him too slowly, but was quite amenable to having a fist pushed under his chin (gently!) to lift his front up so he changed legs and trotted properly. Eventually he learned to change legs on command, bless him. He was a most obliging soul.

Probably because he liked breathing.

What an interesting thread, I'm I wrong in believing that judges in the past would insist that you trot your dog? Has this changed? I haven't been near a show ring for some years so I would appreciate some comments on this.

To force trotting, depending on the dog I was showing, I would sometimes start my run by taking off with my right leg. Sometimes worked.

If your dog paces in the ring, most judges will ask you to go round again in hope that they will trot.

hairybeasty wrote:


Hi Hairybeasty Not that I know of I think I'd probably fall over when practicing with the dog. But I've tried various jumping exercises with varying distances etc for agility with the lurchers. What I do for showing is to try different speeds with the dog on the beach so I can see where the feet are falling when they're trotting. Elise

hairybeasty wrote:


Friend used to do something simler with her welsh, but by trotting her through verry long grass,did the trick, she won quite a few shows, a few of them she won just by running
her in to the ring, the judge had made their minds up the second they saw her,
sadly her showing days were over, when a stallion ripped a chunck out of her neck.

Layla paces a lot, especaly when shes tired - you can always tell when she does it,
as her bum kind of swings from side to side.