Cavaletti - Not just for horses!

I am a little bit of a canine gait freak, and I always love watching dogs with healthy and fluid motion.  The effortless elegance gives me goosebumps, especially when watching in slow motion!

This is one of the reasons I enjoy Cavaletti work as part of Canine Fitness. It can really bring out the best in your dog’s gait.  It is a “multi purpose” exercise and considered a cardio workout as well as a strengthening and spinal “lengthening” tool. Additionally, it improves front and rear end proprioception.  The dog has to trot between poles, and the core muscles have to engage to carry the trunk over the poles, while the front and rear limbs have to extend to a degree that may be greater than during an average trot on your daily leash walk (depending on the distance between the poles).  This is a big workout! It may also help dogs that do a lot of "pacing", which is a gait where front and hind limb of the same side move forward at the same time. This gait is not as effective at strengthening the core as is a trot or gallop. I call it the "lazy walk". Pacing may be normal for dogs at certain speeds, but there is cause for concern if your dog doesn't typically pace and suddenly paces a lot. Although Rosi's natural stride is a trot, she tends to pace when we walk together with her on leash (I'm too slow for her!). I thought it would be a nice challenge to try to teach her to go from a pace into a trot on cue, and it worked! The video is mostly to show you what pacing looks like, but it's also interesting to see how she consciously has to shift her legs to move into a trot.

Depending on the structure of the dog, the pole to pole distance may vary.  You will find many sources out there that say to use the dog’s height from the ground to the withers, but that is just a starting guide.  I have worked with several dogs, and most of them need an adjustment in the pole to pole distance.  A dog’s natural stride length and fitness level has to be taken into consideration. Some dogs and certain breeds may not be able to extend/flex the limbs as much.  My dog Rosi is a good example of not having the greatest ability to “reach” forward (shorter stride), due to the lay of her shoulder blade, which is a little more vertical than I'd like it to be.  There are other structural or pathologic causes of shortened strides. It may take a few tries to get the spacing correct. For dogs with longer backs compared to their legs (I call them rectangular dogs 😄, I use the measurement of the length of the dog's back to determine the pole to pole distance and adjust as needed.  The dog should land its stride approximately in the middle between poles.  It is extremely valuable to record the first few sessions in slow motion, as it can be difficult to assess the stride and proper setup by simply watching while you are next to your dog.

Ideally, the number of poles should be 8 or 10, but initially you can start with less to teach them the exercise (always even number).  Sometimes dogs will try to jump them, but they will quickly figure out which movement gets rewarded and which doesn't. I like to have the dog wrap a  cone at the end of each rep, which keeps a fluid motion and sets them up in a straight line to enter the Cavaletti.  While performing the Cavaletti, the dog should not look at the owner, which causes weight shifting to one side and will interfere with a proper gait.  During the learning phase, a feed bowl works well to keep the dog driving in a straight line as a treat is thrown into the bowl after each turn (or have them drive to a mat or an automatic target treat dispenser). 

The pole height is generally not set any higher than hock height.  Opt for a lower height, especially if after video review, you feel that your dog is not extending as much as you think he should.  If the poles are higher than hock height, the shoulders and elbows, as well as stifles and hips, have to flex more, which can also be beneficial for strengthening the front and rear assembly, however, it is not recommended to perform Cavaletti in this manner on a regular basis, because it would promote a “hackney” type gait.  

There are many Cavaletti sets available for purchase, but I found that you can easily make your own using PVC pipes.  I had some leftover PVC from agility jumps, so I built four additional poles, since the set I have only came with six poles. These are the connectors and sliding jump cups I use. For small dogs, the poles can be placed on the ground.

In the video below I wanted to demonstrate the difference between higher than hock height vs. lower than hock height Cavaletti performance.  You can see that Rosi has to flex her elbows/shoulder and stifle/hip quite a bit more when navigating the higher poles.  Additionally, her trunk sways from side to side, which may cause strain to her spine.  If the goal is increased range of motion of front and rear limb joints, it is recommended to set up Cavaletti, so the dog is required to high step WALK through them.  This setup involves spacing the poles closer together for a slow, controlled and safe movement with the same strengthening benefit.  I will post a demo video of this exercise soon.

Happy Cavaletti! 🐕🐕🐕

As promised, here is Rosi high step walking. This exercise is geared towards improving range of motion in front (shoulder/elbow flexion) and rear limbs (hip/stifle flexion) and improved proprioception. The dog has to actively think where to place feet/legs. Older dogs can benefit from this exercise as it is low impact, but strengthening, and it helps with joint lubrication. The movement also promotes mental stimulation. This exercise does not help with lengthening of the stride and care should be taken that dogs are introduced slowly to prevent them from attempting to jump or trot through it.