Is There A Link Between Limb Length Disparity And Asymmetrical Feet?A study measured the hooves of a small group of horses used in a previous study that examined limb length disparity

摘要

Acommonly encountered anomaly when the front feet of the horse are compared is the occurrence of two differently shaped and sized front feet, which can be defined as so-called "uneven" feet. Frequently the smaller hoof will be quite differently shapedfrom its partner, with more growth height occurring at the heels and converging compression marks occurring midway on the anterior hoof wall (Figure 1).The appearance of this type of hoof has led to the belief that the hoof is contracted, while the larger hoof is thought to have gained its size due to bearing more weight.In 2011, Pares developed a non-linear model for estimating hoof surface area in unshod Cavall Pirinec Catala horses. Pere Pares and Maarten Oosterlinck then used the developed hoof surface area equation to investigate hoof size and symmetry in young Catalan Pyrenean horses reared under semi-intensive conditions. This study found a significant occurrence of left-right symmetry — 98%, for hoof surface area. In 2014, I used this technique for an assessment of static asymmetry in 10 unbroken horses at preand post trim of the hooves.