Veterinary Student University of Georgia Winterville
There are approximately 1600 military working dogs (MWD) in the United States. However, there is a paucity of information regarding how MWD equipment and uniform components affect movement. The objective of the study was to assess the impact of a tactical harness on three-dimensional motion of the thoracic limb in dogs. Five adult mixed-breed dogs were custom fit with tactical harnesses. Each dog had 19 retroreflective skin markers applied to determine 3-D joint motion during dynamic motion. Sagittal plane, transverse plane and frontal plane kinematics were created for the shoulder, elbow and carpus. Kinematic waveforms were analyzed using statistical parametric mapping paired t-tests (a = 0.05). Angular displacements were determined, and total joint range of motion (ROM) was compared using paired t-tests (a = 0.05). Statistically significant differences were found in the kinematic waveforms in all joints at both a walk and trot. Wearing a tactical harness increased sagittal angular displacement in the elbow but decreased it in the shoulder and carpus. Wearing a tactical harness affected the ROM in all joints of the forelimb. The elbow was the most affected and the shoulder joint was least affected by wearing a tactical harness. The main limitations to the study include small study population size and dogs were not performing active duties while motion was studied. The clinical impact of wearing a tactical harness is unknown at this time, particularly when dogs are performing their duties while wearing harnesses.
