Locomotion on three legs: the tripedal gaits of canine amputees

Abstract The gaits of bipedal and quadrupedal animals are well characterized, while, with few naturally occurring tripedal gaits, little is understood regarding locomotion on three legs. Canine amputees provide a unique perturbation into the study of locomotion. This study assesses whether these individuals use distinct limb sequences, with clearly defined kinematics and kinetics, which could be considered discrete gaits. Data for a group of hind- and forelimb canine amputees across a range of s