Evaluation of fixed factors affecting hoof health

By Huang, Y. C. and McCoy, G. C. and Shanks, R. D., Livestock Production Science, 1995
Research Paper Web Link / URL:
Description
Hoof trimming data collected from the University of Illinois dairy farm were studied for a single year (1983). There were 4722 trimmings in 1239 cows of 5 breeds (Ayrshire, Brown Swiss, Guernsey, Holstein, and Jersey). Scores for six traits (corkscrew claw (CC), heel erosion (HE), interdigital dermatitis (ID), laminitis (LA), sole ulcers (SU) and white line separation (WLS)) were tested for fixed factors (breed, year, season, age, trimming interval and months postpartum) by an animal model. Ayrshires and Jerseys had `better' claw scores for all six traits. Brown Swiss had the worst score for CC. LA, SU and WLS were worst in Guernseys, and HE and ID were worst in Holsteins. November was the highest risk season for HE, SU and LA, whereas WLS was worst at July trimming. Scores of CC and ID were worst in March. Risk of each of the six traits increased with age. A 4-month trimming interval had worse scores than a longer trimming interval for all traits except SU and CC. This emphasized that cows trimmed more frequently usually had a higher probability of repeating their problems. Multiple factors were significantly involved in the expression of one or more of the six hoof traits
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