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Cow-hocked (
An animal is cow-hocked when its
Cow-hocked (adj.
In linguistics, an adjective (abbreviated ) is a word that generally modifies a noun or noun phrase or describes its referent. Its semantic role is to change information given by the noun.
Traditionally, adjectives were considered one of the mai ...
) or cow hocks ( n.) describes a defect in the conformation of four-legged animals, primarily of livestock
Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to ani ...
and horses
The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million ...
, but also of dogs
The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. ...
and cats.
Description
An animal is cow-hocked when its hock
Hock may refer to:
Common meanings:
* Hock (wine), a type of wine
* Hock (anatomy), part of an animal's leg
* To leave an item with a pawnbroker
People:
* Hock (surname)
* Richard "Hock" Walsh (1948-1999), Canadian blues singer
Other uses:
* A ...
is set inward, resulting in a splayed look in the back legs. This can result in the uneven wearing of hooves, which can end up in permanent lameness
A limp is a type of asymmetric abnormality of the gait. Limping may be caused by pain, weakness, neuromuscular imbalance, or a skeletal deformity. The most common underlying cause of a painful limp is physical trauma; however, in the absence ...
, and can prove to be a very serious condition. Permanent lameness usually results in the animal going for meat, as the cow will be in far too much pain to move, the milk
Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Immune factors and immune-modulat ...
in a cow will not be up to standard, and the animal could not be used in breeding
Breeding is sexual reproduction that produces offspring, usually animals or plants. It can only occur between a male and a female animal or plant.
Breeding may refer to:
* Animal husbandry, through selected specimens such as dogs, horses, and r ...
, as this trait would pass on. However, most animals will not have too serious a condition, and will walk with a splayed-leg look. Another way of spotting cow-hock is when the hooves point outward as a result of the incorrect lineup of the joints in the leg.
Another problem with cow-hocks is when the joints in the leg are not set correctly, the joints in the back will most likely be set incorrectly as well. The animal will not do well in agricultural
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peopl ...
shows, will be in a lot of pain, and for both of these reasons, it is advised to take the animal out of any breeding programs.
Effects
In cow-hocked horses, the hind hocks are too close together and point toward each other, with the feet too widely apart. It is a fairly common defect, and if themetatarsal
The metatarsal bones, or metatarsus, are a group of five long bones in the foot, located between the tarsal bones of the hind- and mid-foot and the phalanges of the toes. Lacking individual names, the metatarsal bones are numbered from the me ...
bones are vertical, may not always cause lameness. A combination of cow- and sickle-hocks poses a greater risk.
Cats are commonly cow-hocked, with the hind legs angling inward at the ankles and the feet splaying outward more than forward. Mild cow-hocking is negligible, and kittens often look a little cow-hocked, but if the defect is severe, the resulting poor alignment can damage the joints and spine. A similar deviation may occur in the vertical alignment of a dog's rear structure.Linda P. Case, ''The Dog: Its Behavior, Nutrition, and Health'' (Blackwell, 2005, 2nd ed.), p. 47.
See also
* Bow-legged * Knock-kneed *Post-legged Post-legged describes a condition in which the joints in an animal are not set correctly. When an animal is post-legged, the leg joints are far too straight, with almost no bend in the legs. Four-legged animals must have some bend in the hocks, ot ...
References
{{Reflist Livestock Horse anatomy Dog anatomy Cat health