Hoof Cracks in Beef Cattle
Research based information for this article was compiled by Rachel Endecott (Former MSU Extension Beef Cattle Specialist). The complete article is available at http://www.msuextension.org/beefcattle/cowsensechronicle.html.
In general, foot cracks are classified as either horizontal (transverse fissures) or vertical (sand cracks). The mildest form of a horizontal foot crack is known as a hardship groove, which is thought to be associated with disease, stress, or nutritional abnormality. A Canadian study of 6 different beef cattle herds found that the prevalence of har...