Re: gates

[Bettyc <Bettyc@flyinggoat.com>]

PWSPARKS@aol.com wrote:
> Jonathon Woolf described the various gates that many mammals use to walk or
> run. But I have a question. I am familiar with the running or "bounding" gate
> that he described but what then is the thwo front feet together followed by
> the two hind feet together gate that is commonly used by rabbits, squirrles,
> dogs, cats, gariffes, etc. I always thoght that was a run differing from the
> gallop de3scribed by jonathon. Any comments?


gaits (not gates) are usually timed ONLY at the point the feet contact
the ground.  Not during the reach and release phases where the legs
stretch out. I think in most of the cases that you mention above, that
you'd find the same track patterns (with modifications for size of feet,
body length, length of leg, etc) which are labelled as the gallop
(though I'm not entirely sure of rabbits-I don't know if they can keep a
consistant fast gait without going into the springbuck sproinging thing
they do.)

If you are thinking of the running gait usually shown in cartoons, that
one is made up as an exaggeration of the gallop.  Don't feel bad about
not being able to observe this accurately, it was only the development
of repeat photography that revealed the gait's actual movements, and
until then no one really believed that horses actually lift all four
feet off the ground at the same time during the gallop)

-- 
           Betty Cunningham  
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