Description and Evaluation of Objective Hoof Measurements of Dairy Cattle

Procedures to measure objectively hooves of cattle were developed and tested for ease of use in typical dairy herds. Traits measured were hoof angles, total lengths, heel depths, and lengths of two segments of hoof wall to estimate growth and wear rates of hooves; Three observers repeated measurements on a group of Holstein cows to quantify variance among and within observers. Repeatabilities across observers were high (>.8) for most hoof measurements although heel depth was an exception (.5). Repeatabilities within observers for heel depth were higher than those across observers, indicating differences of criteria used by individual observers. Additional training was necessary for an accurate measurement of heel depth among observers. Such training increased repeatability to .75. The methods can provide accurate measurements for use in studies of environmental and genetic effects on hooves of cattle.