The Kinematic Profile of the Marcha Batida Gait Is Distinct from the Marcha Picada Gait

The objective was to compare the linear, spatial, and temporal variables of the Marcha Batida (MB) and Marcha Picada (MP) gaits, aiming to characterize and identify their differences. 135 ridden Mangalarga Marchador horses were evaluated. The following variables were measured: speed, length, frequency, and duration of strides; distribution of stride time in each type of support; time and position of the diagonal dissociation; type and distance of the lateral limb footprints. At the same speed (3.88 m/s), MB and MP presented the same frequency, duration, and length of strides. MB showed a predominance of diagonal supports, followed by thoracic tripedal, pelvic tripedal, lateral bipedal, quadrupedal and pelvic monopedal supports, while MP showed a predominance of lateral supports, followed by diagonal supports, thoracic and pelvic tripedal supports, and pelvic unipedal support. All MP animals showed dissociation starting with the thoracic limb and were more dissociated than the MB. Most MB horses showed overstepping, while in the MP, the predominance was of animals with overstepping and an average distance of 17.68 centimeters. It is concluded that MB and MP presented differences in the kinematic variables analyzed, and the values found showed divergence from the description of the current breed standard.