hooves-need info

[Dragonfly acres]

can someone tell me what's up with these hooves?
I went with a friend of mine to look at some cattle she was interested in buying and I pointed it out to her, I tried looking it up on the Internet but came up with nothing I told her to wait tell I can ask around first before she commits. they looked long and funny compared to my girls

[Ronney]

They look funny because they are overgrown to hell and gone. I would go so far as to say that I have never seen feet this bad before.

It is up to your friend of course, but she would be wise to pass them by as she is likely to be buying a heap of trouble. They could be trimmed back but this would be an on-going thing which would have to be done once or twice a year.

Cows with overgrown hooves are forced to walk on the back of the heel which causes stress of tendons and joints and often the cow will end up with a hunched appearance. Your very good photo shows the weight being thrown back on the heel clearly. Note the hooves and the way the middle cow is standing. To her right is a cow's leg with normal hoof growth and the placement of her foot is quite different.

If I were looking at these cows I would be pointing this fault out to him/her. To me, they are unsaleable but it is also a welfare issue as this condition can be very painful.

Cheers,
Ronnie

[ozark_jewels]

They look a little on the thin side now...just imagine how painful that will be when they are heavy with calf?? I wouldn't buy those cows, but I sure would ask the seller whats wrong with their feet....kinda dumb like I'm just a stupid hick who don't know nothing. Their response could be very interesting and might give me insight on whether they are just ignorant or are trying to take advantage of a buyer.
Thats a management problem, but I think its gone to far to fix now.

[Dragonfly acres]

thank you so much for the feed back!
a few months back when I was looking around for some dexters I came across a few that had the same look and I stayed away.
I do want to mention that I remembered that the ones I was looking at and a couple of these originally came from the same breeder could this be a hereditary problem also?
this seller had a couple of calf's that I myself was kinda looking into buying they are off spring of these cows with the funny hooves.
I also noticed and asked about the weight on these cows and was told that the calf's were bringing them down and they need to be separated from them (the calf's are April babies). since I was kinda looking at the calf's they offered us as a package deal. the two cows, one 4-06 heifer, and three 4-07 heifers for 2,700 for all 6 females. they are all registered dexters. but like I mentioned before I wonder if its hereditary if so I don't want to end up with those calves growing up with hooves looking like that.
also was wondering when you all said its a management problem would that be what they are fed or where they are housed?
also if she gets the hooves cut back would this happen again?
sorry about all the questions!
pic's of the calf's

[tinknal]

Have these cattle been in a lot? Looks to me like critters that haven't gotten out much. Personally, if the price was right I wouldn't be afraid of them. I think in a large pasture these feet would straighten out in time.

It is very likely a genetic problem, especially since you say other cattle from the same farm had the same problem. A high grain diet can also cause this problem, but in either case, even if you trimmed their feet you would not fix the problem. To manage these cattle, would require regular hoof trimming. Not a real easy and fun job, and most likely not a really cheap job either, and that is if you can find someone to do it.

I have to disagree with tinknal, I do not think that more excersize would fix these, or for that matter keep the problem at bay once the hooves were trimmed.

Stay away from these cows, I think they would be more trouble than they are worth. As to the calves, I would have to know whether or not the cows' problem was genetic or a managment issue(too much grain). They could be a good deal, or they could turn out the same way as the cows.

[Dexter_Cattle]

I have to say not all dexters but atleast 1 third or so can have longer hooves. It is a genetic thing sometimes and sometimes it is over feeding of grain or alfalfa/clover.

IF it is the later it is not genetic.

If you breed them to a good dexter bull without feet problems you will usually fix it. From what I have been told, the breed is genetically based for really hilly rocky land in Ireland. So selecting for feet was never a big thing because they wore them down and broke them off in the hilly rocky land.

Fast forward 100 years, breeders have been improving feet but not by any means perfect. I would say out of our 60 Dexters, 15 or so of our cows have bad feet. Not quite as bad as the above picture (except for one) but our bull, that is where he is near perfect at (I say that because we had him Classified and that is one of the things they look at.

He seems to correct it after one generation, but we still sell all the bull calves out of the poor feeted cows, as steers and don't use them for breeding.

At that price they are a bargain and you can spend a little more on a bull with good feet.

Dan

[ksfarmer]

Those cows have had too much grain at one time in their life. That causes the hooves to grow out and can end up crippling her. They can be trimmed back, but that is only a temporary fix. Consider them culls and stay away from them.

[mtman]

if they came from a place with a lot of white oak eating to many acorns will do that to

[agmantoo]

I have never observed the entire herd exhibiting founder as this group demonstrates. I have seen a few animals over the years that had such feet but not an entire herd. These are some unusual animals IMO. The head to body ratio seems disproportionate in some of the pics with the head being overly large. Why try to propagate such genetics? Find some stock elsewhere. In good red neck english, these are some sorry animals that have been poorly cared for!

[tyusclan]

Looks like possibly some amateur inbreeding involved with this herd as well. I'd steer clear of them.