Abstract #759

# 759
Genetic parameters of individual hoof lesions in Canadian Holsteins.
Francesca Malchiodi*1, Astrid Koeck1, NĂºria Chapinal2, Mehdi Sargolzaei1,3, Allison Fleming1, David F. Kelton4, Flavio S. Schenkel1, Filippo Miglior1,5, 1Centre for Genetic Improvement of Livestock, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada, 2Animal Welfare Group, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada, 3Semex Alliance, Guelph, ON, Canada, 4Department of Population Medicine, Ontario Veterinary College, Guelph, ON, Canada, 5Canadian Dairy Network, Guelph, ON, Canada.

Hoof lesions in dairy herds represent a painful condition for the cow and pose a financial loss for farmers, due to the costs associated with treating lesions, as well as to decreased cow performance. The objective of this study was to estimate genetic parameters for individual hoof lesions in Canadian Holsteins. Data were recorded by 26 hoof trimmers serving 365 herds located in Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario, and trained to use a rugged touch-screen computerized lesion recording system. A total of 108,032 hoof-trimming records from 53,654 cows were collected between 2009 and 2012. Hoof lesions included in the analysis were digital dermatitis, interdigital dermatitis, interdigital hyperplasia, sole hemorrhage, sole ulcer, toe ulcer, and white line lesion. All variables were analyzed as binary traits, as the presence or the absence of the lesions, and as categorical variables, using a severity score from 1 to 3. Only the first hoof-trimming session of each lactation was included in the analyses. When considering the presence or absence of the lesions, heritabilities (SE) for digital dermatitis, interdigital dermatitis, interdigital hyperplasia, sole hemorrhage, sole ulcer, toe ulcer, and white line lesion were 0.053 (0.005), 0.011 (0.002), 0.025 (0.004), 0.012 (0.002), 0.031 (0.004), 0.004 (0.001), and 0.012 (0.002), respectively. Similar results were found when severity was considered. The estimated breeding values between these 2 set of variables showed correlations ranging from 0.88 to 0.97. The reliability of EBV was slightly higher when severity was analyzed. Infection lesions showed moderate genetic correlations with interdigital hyperplasia and low negative correlations with horn lesions. Among horn lesions, moderate to high genetic correlations were found.

Key Words: hoof lesion, dairy cattle