Influence of the angle of the claw horn to the sole surface on the productive traits of cows

One of the important conditions for maintaining high productivity of dairy cows is healthy hooves. The purpose of the work was to determine the influence of the angle of inclination of the claw horn to the sole surface on the productive traits of cows and to off er the addition in the instructions for the judging of dairy and dairy and beef cows, evaluation the angle of inclination of the claw horn to the sole surface. It was found that an increase in the angle of inclination of the anterior wall of the claw horn of the forelimbs to the sole surface of more than 55° leads to a decrease in lifetime productivity and productive longevity in all subgroups of cows of different breeds, respectively, such as Black-and-White breed from 6552 to 8515 kg of milk and from 1.5 to 2.3 lactations, Holstein breed by 2852 kg of milk and by 1.6 lactations. Among the breeds of combined productivity direction such as Bestuzhevskaya breed from 1869 to 10 908 kg of milk and from 1.6 to 3.1 lactations, Simmental breed from 4141 to 10 697 kg of milk and from 2.0 to 3.4 lactations. During the research a positive correlation (r = +0.76–0.89) was determined between the duration of productive use and the shape of the claws. A device for measuring the angle of inclination of the claw horn of cloven-hoofed animals to the sole surface has been developed. The device improves ease of use, increases the accuracy of measuring the angle of inclination of the front surface of the claw horn to the supporting surface. It can be successfully used by specialists in practical work. It is proposed to make an addition to the instructions for the grading of cattle of dairy and dairy and beef breeds, recommending to take into account the angle of inclination of the claw horn to the fl oor surface to improve selection and breeding work in dairy cattle breeding.