Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-2plfb Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-30T21:28:27.488Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Measurement and error of hoof horn growth rate in sheep

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 September 2011

J. SHELTON ,
N. M. USHERWOOD ,
W. WAPENAAR ,
M. L. BRENNAN  and
L. E. GREEN
J. SHELTON
Affiliation:
School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
N. M. USHERWOOD
Affiliation:
School of Veterinary Science and Medicine, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington, UK
W. WAPENAAR
Affiliation:
School of Veterinary Science and Medicine, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington, UK
M. L. BRENNAN
Affiliation:
School of Veterinary Science and Medicine, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington, UK
L. E. GREEN*
Affiliation:
School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
*
*To whom all correspondence should be addressed. Email: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Determining the rate of hoof horn growth in sheep is important for understanding the physiology and pathology of the foot and the impact of the environment and the treatment of diseased feet on foot health. It could lead to improved understanding of the interaction between hoof horn and pasture/barn floor characteristics and in methods for prevention and treatment of ovine foot diseases. In the current study, the hoof horn was measured using a previously tested protocol on all eight digits of 21 healthy yearling mule ewes on a farm in North Wales on four occasions over a period of 53 days. The mean hoof horn growth rate was 0·11 mm (s.e.m. 0·02) per day; the residual error variance was 0·024 and the R2 was 0·245. There were no significant differences between hoof horn growth rates in front and hind feet or between medial and lateral claws or over time.

Type
Animal Research Paper
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 150 , Issue 3 , June 2012 , pp. 373 - 378
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Buffa, E. A., Van Den Berg, S. S., Verstraete, F. J. M. & Swart, N. G. N. (1992). Effect of dietary biotin supplement on equine hoof horn growth rate and hardness. Equine Veterinary Journal 24, 472–474.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Butler, K. & Hintz, H. (1977). Effect of level of feed intake and gelatin supplementation on growth and quality of hoofs of ponies. Journal of Animal Science 44, 257–261.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dekker, A., Moonen, P. & Pol, J. (2005). Linear hoof defects in sheep infected with foot-and-mouth disease. Veterinary Record 156, 572–575.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Florence, L. & McDonnell, S. M. (2006). Hoof growth and wear of semi-feral ponies during an annual summer ‘self-trimming’ period. Equine Veterinary Journal 38, 642–645.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Green, L. E., Wassink, G. J., Grogono-Thomas, R., Moore, L. J. & Medley, G. (2007). Looking after the individual to reduce disease in the flock: a binomial mixed effects model investigating the impact of individual sheep management of footrot and interdigital dermatitis in a prospective longitudinal study on one farm. Preventive Veterinary Medicine 78, 172–178.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hahn, M. V., McDaniel, B. T. & Wilk, J. C. (1986). Rates of hoof growth and wear in Holstein cattle. Journal of Dairy Science 69, 2148–2156.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kaler, J. & Green, L. E. (2009). ‘Farmers’ practices and factors associated with the prevalence of all lameness and lameness attributed to interdigital dermatitis and footrot in sheep flocks in England in 2004’. Preventive Veterinary Medicine 92, 52–59.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kaler, J., Medley, G. F., Grogono-Thomas, R., Wellington, E. M. H., Calvo-Bado, L. A., Wassink, G. J., King, E. M., Moore, L. J., Russell, C. & Green, L. E. (2010 a). Factors associated with changes of state of foot conformation and lameness in a flock of sheep. Preventive Veterinary Medicine 97, 237–244.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kaler, J., Daniels, S. L. S., Wright, J. L. & Green, L. E. (2010 b). A randomised factorial design clinical trial to investigate the impact of parenteral long acting oxytetracycline, foot trimming and flunixine meglumine on time to recovery from lameness and foot lesions in sheep lame with footrot. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine 24, 420–425.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kim, J. & Breur, G. (2008). Temporospatial and kinetic characteristics of sheep walking on a pressure sensing walkway. Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research 72, 50–55.Google ScholarPubMed
Livesey, C. T. & Laven, R. A. (2007). Effects of housing and intake of methionine on the growth and wear of hoof horn and the conformation of the hooves of first-lactation Holstein heifers. Veterinary Record 160, 470–476.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Miller, K., Marchinton, R. & Nettles, V. (1986). The growth rate of hooves of white-tailed deer. Journal of Wildlife Diseases 22, 129–131.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Quintanilla, R., Varona, L. & Noguera, J. L. (2006). Testing genetic determinism in rate of hoof growth in pigs using Bayes factors. Livestock Science 105, 50–56.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sikarskie, J. G., Brockway, C. R., Ullrey, D. E., Schmitt, S. M., Nellist, J. T., Cooley, T. M. & Ku, P. K. (1988). Dietary protein and hoof growth in juvenile female white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). Journal of Zoo Animal Medicine 19, 18–23.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, M. B., Amos, H. E. & Froetschel, M. A. (1999). Influence of ruminally undegraded protein and zinc methionine on milk production, hoof growth and composition, and selected plasma metabolites of high producing dairy cow. Professional Animal Scientist 15, 268–277.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Telezhenko, E., Bergsten, C., Magnusson, M. & Nilsson, C. (2009). Effect of different flooring systems on claw conformation of dairy cows. Journal of Dairy Science 92, 2625–2633.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tranter, W. P. & Morris, R. S. (1992). Hoof growth and wear in pasture-fed dairy cattle. New Zealand Veterinary Journal 40, 89–96.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Vermunt, J. J. & Greenough, P. R. (1995). Structural characteristics of the bovine claw: horn growth and wear, horn hardness and claw conformation. British Veterinary Journal 151, 157–180.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Vokey, F., Guard, C., Erb, H. & Galton, D. (2001). Effects of alley and stall surfaces on indices of claw and leg health in dairy cattle housed in a free-stall barn. Journal of Dairy Science 84, 2686–2699.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wassink, G. J., Grogono-Thomas, R., Moore, L. J. & Green, L. E. (2003 a). Risk factors associated with the prevalence of footrot in sheep from 1999 to 2000. Veterinary Record 152, 351–358.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wassink, G. J., Moore, L. J., Grogono-Thomas, R. & Green, L. E. (2003 b). Exploratory findings on the prevalence of contagious ovine digital dermatitis in sheep in England and Wales during 1999 to 2000. Veterinary Record 152, 504–506.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wassink, G. J., King, E. M., Grogono-Thomas, R., Brown, J. C.Moore, L. J. & Green, L. E. (2010). A within farm clinical trial to compare two treatments (parenteral antibacterials and hoof trimming) for sheep lame with footrot. Preventive Veterinary Medicine 96, 93–103.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wheeler, J. L., Bennet, J. W. & Hutchinson, J. C. D. (1972). Effect of ambient temperature and day length on hoof growth in sheep. Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 79, 91–97.CrossRefGoogle Scholar