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Cow hock: A normal tarsal conformation in donkeys ( Equus asinus )
Author(s) -
Abdelgalil A. I.,
Hassan E. A.,
Torad F. A.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
equine veterinary education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.304
H-Index - 31
eISSN - 2042-3292
pISSN - 0957-7734
DOI - 10.1111/eve.13011
Subject(s) - hock , donkey , equus asinus , medicine , deformity , veterinary medicine , anatomy , surgery , biology , ecology
Summary Cow hock is a conformational deformity of the tarsal joint in which the points of hocks are close to median plane. It is a normal feature in cattle and camels while it is a definite abnormality in horses. In donkeys, cow hock has been reported in both clinically normal and lame animals. The aim of this study was to develop a new objective method to diagnose and grade cow‐hocked donkeys and to test the hypothesis that cow hock is prevalent in donkeys and can be considered normal conformation. A prospective study was conducted on 50 adult Egyptian baladi donkeys free from musculoskeletal disease. Subjective and objective evaluation was performed including goniometric and radiographic assessment of tarsal joint angle in extended full‐weight bearing and maximum flexion from which the range of motion was calculated. A new linear measurement was designed to compare the distance between tuber ischii, points of hock and distance between the points situated at mid‐distance between medial and lateral heels. Forty‐four donkeys (88%) were subjectively cow‐hocked, 46 donkeys (92%) were cow‐hocked based on rear view linear measurements. Thirteen donkeys (28.3%) were diagnosed with mild cow‐hock, 18 (39.1%) moderate cow‐hock and 15 (32.6%) severe cow‐hock. Thirty‐three (71.74%) of cow‐hocked donkeys expressed base wide, 11 (23.91%) base narrow and two (4.35%) normal distal limb conformation. No statistically significant differences were reported between right and left joint angles in both goniometric and radiographic measurements. Strong positive correlation was recorded between goniometric and radiographic angular measurements in extended, flexed as well as range of motion. Poor correlation was reported between the degree of cow hock and the extended tarsal joint angle in both right ( r = 0.1) and left ( r = 0.2) tarsal joint angles. The study concluded that cow hock may be a prevalent non‐pathological conformation in Egyptian baladi donkeys.