By Greenough, Paul R. and Petrie, Lyall Campbell John Scott Todd, Bovine Practitioner, 1998
Description
Sandcracks have been classified under five different categories or 'types'. Several possible causative mechanisms can be identified including the weight of the animal, the presence of horizontal defects and bending of the dorsal surface of the claw. In two groups of heifers it was found that the rate of claw growth is approximately 0.46 cm per month during the summer months and 0.32 cm per month during the winter. Applying these growth rates to the position of a horizontal defect relative to the skin/horn junction permits the date on which the defect was formed to be estimated. The incidence of horizontal defects is exceptionally high in some herds of beef cows and was found to vary from 29 to 100% of the animals in six of the herds in the study
Sandcracks have been classified under five different categories or 'types'. Several possible causative mechanisms can be identified including the weight of the animal, the presence of horizontal defects and bending of the dorsal surface of the claw. In two groups of heifers it was found that the rate of claw growth is approximately 0.46 cm per month during the summer months and 0.32 cm per month during the winter. Applying these growth rates to the position of a horizontal defect relative to the skin/horn junction permits the date on which the defect was formed to be estimated. The incidence of horizontal defects is exceptionally high in some herds of beef cows and was found to vary from 29 to 100% of the animals in six of the herds in the study
We welcome and encourage discussion of our linked research papers. Registered users can post their comments here. New users' comments are moderated, so please allow a while for them to be published.