FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION
pictured above, from left: Figure 5 . Spine of Scapula and Notch Figure 6. Angle of Shoulder Blade to Upper Arm (A Normal Dog, B Dwarf Dog) pictured left: Figure 7. Position of Shoulder Blade on Vertebrae
available to us when physically examining a dog, the optimum layback of the shoul- der blade for most breeds is a 45-degree angle to the ground. To place the leg up under the body, then a 90-degree angle formed by the juncture of an upper arm of the correct length to the shoulder blade would place the leg back under the body with the elbow approximately beneath the highest point of a well laid back shoulder blade. (See Figures 2 & 6.) Ideally, the highest part of the shoulder blade lies just below the level of the first and fourth vertebrae, with the spine of the shoulder blade pointing to the highest part of the blade. In the majority of breeds, the upper arm is the largest bone in the fore assembly and, even though most standards call for an upper arm length as long as the shoul- der blade, it is, for most breeds, actually longer than the shoulder blade. Again, the point of the shoulder usually referred to in measuring body length is actually the upper end of the upper arm. (See Figure 6.) To help put all of this together in a manner much more straightforward than I am able to do in a few pages, I would encourage you to purchase The Dog Anato- my Workbook , edited by Andrew Gardiner and illustrated by Maggie Raynor. This is a sophisticated “coloring book” that has to do with canine anatomy. I found the illustrations on pages 54 & 55 and the explanations of the forelimb muscle functions on pages 70 & 71 to be quite enlightening. I especially like the “mus- cle lines” diagram of the forelimb muscles on pages 80 & 81. If you are like me, your eyes start to glaze over when trying to study the muscles of the canine body. As an artist, I am very visual and I’ve found this book to be an excellent source of information. As always, if you have any comments or questions, or to schedule a seminar on structure and movement, contact me at jimanie@welshcorgi.com.
On the shoulder assembly, the easily felt land- marks are the spine of the scapula (A) and the “notch” formed where the shoulder blade meets the upper arm (B). The point of shoulder is actually the top of the upper arm (C). (See Figure 5.) The upper arm is approximately equal or some- what longer in nearly all but the dwarf breeds. The body of the upper arm (humerus) makes approxi- mately a 90-degree angle with the spine of the scapula as it returns back to articulate with the leg bones at the point of the elbow. From the point of shoulder, the angle between the blade and the upper arm is perceived to be approximately 90-degrees. By perceived, I mean that using the landmarks
SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, NOVEMBER 2020 | 141
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