HOOF MEASUREMENTS RELATED TO LOCOMOTION SCORES AND CLAW DISORDERS IN DAIRY PRIMIPAROUS COWS

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1 Bull Vet Inst Pulawy 54, 87-92, 2010 HOOF MEASUREMENTS RELATED TO LOCOMOTION SCORES AND CLAW DISORDERS IN DAIRY PRIMIPAROUS COWS JAN OLECHNOWICZ AND JĘDRZEJ MARIA JAŚKOWSKI Department of Veterinary, Faculty of Breeding and Biology of Animals, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland Received for publication November 3, 2009 Abstract The aim of the presented study was to estimate the influence of the traits of hoof measurement in dairy cows on claw disorders, lameness, and locomotion scores were determined. Data on claw health and measurement trait of claws were collected from 68 primiparous cows housed in tie stalls and from 76 primiparous cows housed in free stalls. Data were collected during professional claw trimming. The following claw disorders were recorded: sole haemorrhage, digital dermatitis, interdigital dermatitis, sole ulcer, interdigital growth, axial wall fissure, sand-crack (vertical fissure), laminitis, and dermatitis of the toe. Locomotion scores were defined directly before claw trimming. The angles of claws were measured in degrees with an electronic protractor. The heel depth, dorsal border, and diagonal sole surface were measured with an electronic caliper. Moderate association of claw measurements with claw disorders was demonstrated. No significant differences were found in hoof measurement traits between cows with normal gait and clinical lameness. Key words: dairy cattle, hoof lesion, claw measurement, locomotion scores. Claw lesions are associated with a decreased welfare and with lameness in cows (17, 27). Lameness is correlated with lactation rank, body condition score (BCS), and stall surface (6). A high locomotion score was primarily a problem in older cows and it was phenotypically associated with a big udder, sickled legs, and a long diagonal (2). Abnormal gait, including clinical lameness, in heifers was associated with sole haemorrhages (SH), white line lesions(wll) and digital dermatitis (DD) up to 4 months before calving (4). Several studies showed that clinical lameness of cows decreased milk production and fertility (7, 8, 11, 26). Lameness was associated with earlier culling of cows and economic losses in dairy production (3, 22). Claw disorders in cows appear generally in the lateral claws of the hind limbs. If the disease occurs in the forelimbs, the medial claws are more prone to claw disorders than the lateral claws, but this predisposition is less marked (14). The lateral claws of the hind limbs are larger than the medial claws because the horn capsule, as well as the corium surface of the lateral claws, is larger (16). Such biological adaptation does not protect cows against the greatest predispositions to claw disorders in the lateral claws than the medial claws of the hind limbs. Additionally, in standing cows a greater weight of the hind body falls on the lateral claws of the hind limbs than on the medial claws (13, 25). Before functional claw trimming (FCT), the ratio of outer and inner weight-bearing surface area was on average 63% to 37%. After FCT the surface area significantly increased for 14 weeks. The maximum increase in total ground surface area was found two weeks after FCT (13). In hoof measurements no significant differences were found between the right and left side or inner and outer claws, and seasonal changes in claw shape were mainly explained by the housing system. Claw measurements were compared to survival rates and locomotion scores (2) and changes in hoof measurement recorded during the lactation period were compared to changes in lesion scores (28). Objectives for this study were to determine the influence of the traits of the hoof of the right hind feet in primiparous dairy cows on claw disorders, lameness, and locomotion scores. Material and Methods Herds. Data on claw health and measurement traits of claws were collected from 68 primiparous cows housed in tie stalls with access to pasture throughout the year (farm I), and from 76 primiparous cows housed in free stalls (farm II). Both farms were located in the Wielkopolska region, Poland, and kept Polish Holstein- Friesian cows. However, at farm I, there were 19 primiparous crossbred Polish Holstein-Friesian and Jersey cows. Data were collected during professional claw trimming (November 2008 at farm I and February 2009 at farm II). At farm I, cows calving from the beginning of 2008 to the end of March 2008 (42.6%)

2 88 had their first claw trimming in April 2008, but cows calving from April to November (57.4%) had the first claw trimming in November At farm II, cows calving from the beginning of 2008 to mid-august (55.3%) had their first claw trimming in August 2008, but cows calving from September to the end of December (44.7%) had their first claw trimming in February In both herds the claw trimming procedure was performed twice a year, at 6-month interval. The mean age of cows during claw trimming (at the time of data collection) at both farms was similar and amounted to 31 months (ranging from 24 to 42 months). The mean age of cows at first calving was 25 months (ranging from 21 to 34 months). At that time, cows at farm I were 1 month older than cows at farm II. Milk yield per year at both farms amounted to 8,000 and 11,000 kg, respectively. Disorders. Information on the presence (yes/no) of the following claw disorders was recorded: sole haemorrhage (SH), digital dermatitis (DD), interdigital dermatitis (IDD), sole ulcer (SU), interdigital growth (IG), axial wall fissure (AWF), sand-crack (vertical fissure) (S), laminitis (LA), and dermatitis of toe (DT). Locomotion scores. Locomotion scores (Loc) given directly before claw trimming were defined according to Sprecher et al. (24). In both herds each cow was observed when walking away from the same observer at a distance of 5 to 10 m and a score was given on a scale of 1 to 5. Locomotion scores were defined as: 1 = normal gait, 2 = mildly lame, 3 = moderately lame, 4 = lame, and 5 = severe lame. Scores 1 and 2 were qualified as the normal gait, whereas scores 3 as clinical lameness. Hoof measurements. Boelling and Pollott (2) reported that claw traits recorded on only one claw of one hind foot gave a representative picture of both claws on both hind feet. Therefore, the right rear foot was measured. Foot angles of the lateral claws (FA lat o ) and medial claws (FA med o ) were measured with an electronic protractor accurate to 0.1. The shortest shoulder of this instrument at the time of measurements was parallel to the dorsal wall, but the longest shoulder was parallel to the sole. The heel depth, dorsal border, and diagonal sole surface of the right rear claws were measured with an electronic caliper accurate to 0.01 mm. The heel depth of the lateral claws (HD lat, mm) and medial claws (HD med, mm) were measured as the distance between the sole surface and the base of the hairline, using the pads as a prolongation of the sole surface. The dorsal border of both claws (BD lat, mm and BD med, mm) was measured as the distance between the dorsal hairline and the tip of the toe. The same instrument was also used to measure the diagonal length of the sole surface of both claws (Diag lat, mm and Diag med, mm) as the distance between the tip of the toe and the furthest point of the sole. Measurements were taken directly before professional claw trimming, when cows were repressed and the right rear limb was stable. The feet were cleaned prior to measurements. Statistical analysis. Data analysis was performed using the STATISTICA statistical package (Version 8). Results were statistically analysed using the multivariate analysis of variance (ANOVA). The main factors considered in the analysis of variance were as follows: housing system (tie vs. free-stall barns), group of breed (Polish Holstein and Polish Holstein crossbred with the Jersey breed), locomotion score (normal gait and clinical lameness), claws (lateral and medial), and claw disorders (DD, IDD, SU, and others: IG, AWF, S, LA, DT). The significance of differences between means was set at P<0.05 and P<0.01. Results Means and incidence of claw disorders. Means and standard deviations for locomotion scores and traits of hoof measurements are presented in Table 1. Table 1 Means, SD, minimum, and maximum for locomotion and hoof measurements of cows Traits Means SD Minimum Maximum Locomotion score Foot angle lateral claws Foot angle medial claws Heel depth lateral claws (mm) Heel depth medial claws (mm) Dorsal border lateral claws (mm) Dorsal border medial claws (mm) Diagonal lateral claws (mm) Diagonal medial claws (mm)

3 89 Table 2 Means, SD, minimum, and maximum of claw health and incidence of claw disorders Claw disorders 1 Mean SD Minimum Maximum Prevalence (%) SH DD IDD SU IG AWF S LA DT SH - sole haemorrhage, DD - digital dermatitis of heel, IDD - interdigital dermatitis, SU - sole ulcer, IG - interdigital growth, AWF - axial wall fissure, S - sand-crack (vertical fissure), LA - laminitis, DT - dermatitis of toe. Table 3 The effect of selected main factors in measurements of claws in hind right limbs of cows Factors Housing system: Tie-stall barn Free-stall barn Breed: Polish Holstein Friesian PHF x Jersey Locomotion: Normal gait Clinical lameness Claws: Lateral Medial Number of claws Foot angle o ± ± ± ± ± ± ± ±5.85 Heel depth (mm) Dorsal border (mm) Diagonal (mm) ±4.49 A ±10.04 A ± ±5.39 A ±8.57 A ± ± ± ± ± ± ± ±9.63 a ±13.25 a ± ± ± ± ± ± ±12.20 A ± A ± 8.48 A ± A Claw disorders: DD IDD SU *Other Healthy claw ±9.32 A ± ± ± ±4.06 A ±6.35 aa 37.13±2.97 bcab ±3.06 b ±5.34 c ±5.79 ab ±12.11 abab ±4.04 AC ±11.72 acde ±9.14 bd ±10.26 BE AA, (a a) means in the same column followed by identical letters are different at P<0.01 (P<0.05) * IG, AWF, S, LA, DT ±14.16 a ± ±18.43 a ± ±10.56 Means of locomotion scores were relatively low and amounted to 1.26 ±0.71. The prevalence of clinical lameness was in 5.5% of cows and most lameness cases were scored as 3. Foot angles in lateral and medial claws were similar (46.99 ±4.05 and ±5.85 degrees), so heel depth in lateral and medial claws was similar, amounting to ±6.12 and ±5.54 mm respectively. Dorsal wall length and diagonal length of the sole surface in the medial claws were greater (80.24 ±8.48 and ±10.32 mm) than dorsal wall length and diagonal length in the lateral claws (77.09 ±12.20 and ±11.49 mm, respectively). Table 2 shows the total prevalence of claw disorders in fore and hind limbs. Among all the claw disorders the greatest prevalence was found for: DD (31.94%), IDD (13.89%), SH (5.55%), and SU (4.17%). The prevalence of other claw disorders was small (from 0.69% to 1.39%).

4 90 The effect of selected factors in hoof measurements. The effect of selected main factors in hoof measurements is presented in Table 3. Primiparous cows kept in a tie-stall barn had significantly smaller (P<0.01) HD and DB than primiparous cows kept in a free-stall barn. It seems that the reason for these differences is the long time of the selection of cows at farm II for high milk production. In measured hoof traits no differences were found between Polish Holstein and HF crossbreds with Jersey cows, with the exception of dorsal wall length (P<0.05). Between cows with normal gait and clinical lameness no significant differences were observed in measured hoof traits. Longer dorsal walls and diagonal length of the sole surface were found for medial claws of cows (P<0.01) than lateral claws, amounting to and mm, and mm respectively. Cows which had the greatest foot angle demonstrated the greatest predisposition to claw disorders, mainly to DD (P<0.01). Similarly, cows with the smallest measurements in heel depth, except for IDD disorders, were prone to suffer from DD (P<0.05) as compared with cows, which had healthy claws. Cows with the smallest length of dorsal wall in claws as compared to healthy claws exhibited the greatest predisposition to claw disorders, such as DD and SU (P<0.01). The diagonal length of the sole surface of the claws had no effect on the incidence of claw disorders. The greatest diagonal length in the sole surface was found in cows with SU as compared to cows with DD (P<0.05). Discussion Lameness. The low prevalence of lameness in cows in our study (score of 1.26) might be explained by the relatively low prevalence of sole ulcers (4.17%) and a relatively high prevalence of digital dermatitis of the heel (31.94%), but not all cows were lame with DD (only 36.4%). In another study, a low number of lame cows was also found as compared to the prevalence of claw lesions (16, 20). In our study, clinical lameness amounted to 5.5% of cows and this percentage was similar or slightly higher than that found in other studies (20, 22, 27) and considerably lower than the prevalence of lameness (LS 3) in high-producing cows averaging 24.6% with a range from 3.3% to 57.3% (6). In the study by Clarkson et al. (5), the mean prevalence of lameness ranged from 2% to 53.9%, with an overall mean prevalence of 20.6%. In this study the mean prevalence for the summer and winter periods was 18.6% and 25.0%, respectively. The prevalence of the locomotion score 3 was in 25% of cows before calving, and 90% at approximately 250 days in milk (4). Abnormal gait in cows, including clinical lameness, was associated with digital dermatitis and white line lesions. Prevalence of claw disorders. In herds that trimmed claws of dairy cows on a routine basis, it was found that 85% of the herds had one or more cows diagnosed with SU, but the within-herd prevalence tended to be fairly small (between 1% and 5%) (12). In our study the prevalence of SU was similar and amounted to 4.17%. Similar results for the prevalence of claw disorders as in our study were reported by Manske et al. (15), who found that common lesions were heelhorn erosion, sole haemorrhages, and dermatitis. According to Sogstad et al. (21), the prevalence of claw lesions in hind claws amounted to 26.4% for hell-horn heel-horn erosions, 16.3% for haemorrhages of the sole, 10.9% for haemorrhages of the white line, 2.8% for sole ulcers, and 7.8% for white-line fissures. In another study (20), the prevalence of moderate and severe disorders did not exceed 5% for any of the lesions. An increase in the prevalence of claw disorders was observed following lactation (4). Effect of selected factors on hoof measurements. Keeping cows on several concrete flooring types (slatted floor, solid concrete floor, grooved floor or on a straw yard) had no effect on claw shape, except for claw angle (23). Claw angle was the smallest in case of a straw yard (42.5 ) and claw angles for cows on solid concrete floor were greater (47.8 ) than those on a slatted floor and grooved floor (46.1 and 46.6, respectively). The claw angle was greater in younger cows as compared with older, and decreased significantly with age (16). Other authors reported that the foot angle did not reveal any dependence on age and seasonal changes in claw shape were mainly explained by the housing system, and not by climatic factors (2). The claw angle changes during lactation and is generally steeper during the first half of lactation, when claws are shorter (18). The results of the presented study showed that cows kept in a free-stall barn had significantly greater heel depth and dorsal borders as compared to cows kept in a tie-stall barn. It probably results from the long-term selection for high yields. The trait of heel depth was significantly different between cows kept in both housing systems and between claws with different disorders. Boelling and Pollott (2) reported that mean measurements on the right and left foot were very similar, with the exception of heel depth, which was significantly different. Similar problems were reported by Hahn et al. (9). The heel depth, length of dorsal wall of the claw horn, and diagonal length, increased significantly with age, with these three dimensions being greater in older cows (2, 10, 16, 18). In the presented study, the dorsal wall of the claw horn and the diagonal length of the sole surface were significantly different between lateral and medial claws. Greater values were recorded for these traits in medial claws (P<0.01). In two groups of cows (<36 and >36 months) no significant difference was observed between the length of the dorsal wall of the medial and lateral claws (16). The lateral claws of the hind limb in cattle are usually greater in size than the medial claws (16, 18, 19). The possibility of an anatomical difference in the length of the medial and lateral hind digit in cattle should be considered (19). In our study, the differences in all traits of claw measurements between breed groups of cows, as well as between both groups of different locomotion scores (normal gait and clinical lameness), were not significant, with the exception of the dorsal-wall length between breed groups of cows. A greater dorsal-wall length of

5 91 the horn was found in Polish Holstein cows as compared with crossbreds with the Jersey breed (P<0.05). The length of the right lateral hind claws was significantly affected by the production system and breed (1). According to these authors, claw length was longer in Norwegian dairy cattle as compared with Holstein- Friesian animals. Lameness in cows was not associated with claw horn lesions or with any infectious skin disease, except when the lesions were severe as sole ulcers (18). Probably for that reason, there were no significant differences in measurable traits between cows with normal gait (scores 1 and 2) and cows with clinical lameness (scores 3). The measurements of claws with lesions as compared to healthy claws showed moderate correlations of the size of claws with the occurrence of claw disorders. As in results from the literature, the relationship between claw measurements and the incidence of claw disorders has not been extensively investigated. Baird et al. (1) reported that animals with DD had wider heels than those without DD. The length of the dorsal border of the hind claws was related to a higher lesion score of the white line (28). According to those authors, the lesion score of the white line and the locomotion score were positively correlated with the height of the heel and the height of the side wall, indicating that they were related to an increase in hoof measurement values. In conclusion, a greater foot angle in hind limbs of cows is a risk factor for claw disorders, mainly the occurrence of DD. The smallest measurements of heel depth, with the exception of IDD disorders, also promote the occurrence of DD. A smaller dorsal length causes a greater predisposition of cows to the occurrence of DD and SU. The diagonal length of the sole surface of claws did not have an effect on the occurrence of claw disorders. The results of the presented study showed a moderate association of claw measurements with claw disorders. 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