Determination of hardness and mechanical properties of pig claws in three Greek swine herds

Kostas Katsoulis; Stefanos Zaoutsos; Leonidas Leontides; George Kontopidis

doi:10.30574/gscarr.2021.6.3.0037

Authors

Kostas Katsoulis Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, Karditsa, Greece.
Stefanos Zaoutsos Department of Energy Systems, School of Technology, University of Thessaly, Larisa, Greece.
Leonidas Leontides Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, Karditsa, Greece.
George Kontopidis Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaly, Karditsa, Greece.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30574/gscarr.2021.6.3.0037

Keywords:

Claw horn, Elastic modulus, Hardness, Mechanical properties, Sow

Abstract

Lameness in pigs is a major welfare and economic issue for swine breeding herds. Claw lesions have been suggested to be a significant cause for lameness in sows. Housing conditions and nutrition management on the farm influence horn quality and may be associated with the development of claw lesions in pigs.

The current work examines the structure as well as hardness, fracture and mechanical properties of claws retrieved from housing sows. For the mechanical characterisation of pig claws, an experimental program that includes three point bending test in claws was performed in order to obtain the resistance of the tissue under bending forces. The study also includes hardness measurements through Vickers method as well as inspection of the structure through Scanning Electron Microscopy. Experimental measurements show that the claw specimen behaves as a linear viscoelastic material. Measurements of hardness were found to be affected by the moisture content of the claws.

Metrics

Metrics Loading ...

References

Anil SS, Deen J, Anil L, Baidoo SK, Wilson ME, Ward TL. Evaluation of the supplementation of complexed trace minerals on the number of claw lesions in breeding sows; 2009. Manipulating Pig Production XII, Twelfth Biennial Conference of the Australasian Pig Science Association. 2009.

Baggott DG, Bunch KJ, Gill KR. Variations in some inorganic components and physical properties of claw keratin associated with claw disease in the British Friesian cow. British Veterinary Journal. 1988; 144: 534 – 542.

Baillie C, Southam C, Buxton A, Pavan P. Structure and properties of bovine hoof horn. Advanced Composite Letters. 2000; 9: 101 – 113.

Collins SN, Cope BC, Hopegood L, Latham RJ, Linford RG, Reilly JD. Stiffness as a function of moisture content in natural materials: Characterization of hoof horn samples. Journal of Materials Science. 1998; 33: 5185 – 5191.

Franck, A., Cocquyt, G., Simoens, P, De Belie, N. Biomechanical properties of bovine claw horn. Biosystems Engineering. 2006; 93(4): 459 - 4 67.

Galbraith H, Hepburn NL, Wallace M, Hendry KAK, Knight CH, Wilde CJ. Sulphur amino acid supply, uptake, incorporation and DNA synthesis in bovine claw tissue cultured in vitro. 2002; 209 – 212.

Gjein H, Larssen RB. The effect of claw lesions and claw infections on lameness in loose housing of pregnant sows. Acta Vet Scand. 1995; 36: 451 – 459.

Heinonen M, Peltoniemi O, Valros A. Impact of lameness and claw lesions in sows on welfare, health and production. Livest Sci. 2013; 156: 2 – 9.

Hinterhofer C, Stanek C, Binber K. Elastic modulus of equine hoof horn, tested in wall samples, sole samples and frog samples at varying levels of moisture. Berliner und MunchenerTierartzlicheWochenschrift. 1998; 111: 217 - 221.

Lisgara M, Scampardonis V, Kouroupides S, Leontides L. Hoof lesions and lameness in sows in three Greek swine Herds. Journal of swine health production. 2015; 23(5): 244 - 251.

Lisgara M, Skampardonis V, Leontides L. Effect of diet supplementation with chelated zinc, copper and manganese on hoof lesions of loose housed sows. Porcine health management. 2016; 2:6.

Nalon E, Conte S, Maes D, Tuyttens FAM, Devillers N. Assessment of lameness and claw lesions in sows. LivestSci 2013; 156: 10 – 23.

Ossent P. An Introduction to Sow Lameness, Claw Lesions and Pathogenesis Theories. 2010. Zinpro Corporation, Minnesota, USA.

Pluym L, Van Nuffel A, Dewulf J, Cools A, Van Groenweghe F, Van Hoorebeke S, Maes D. Prevalence and risk factors of claw lesions and lameness in pregnant sows in two types of group housing. Vet Med-Czech. 2011; 56: 101 – 109.

Tomlinson DJ, Mülling CH, Fakler TM. Invited review: formation of keratins in the bovine claw: roles of hormones, minerals, and vitamins in functional claw integrity. J Dairy Sci. 2004; 87: 797 – 809.

Vincent JFV. Composites. Biomechanics – Materials. A practical approach. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK; 1992.

Webb N, Penny R, Johnston A. Effect of a dietary supplement of biotin on pig hoof strength and hardness. The Veterinary Record. 1984; 114: 185 – 189.

Winkler B, Margerison JK. Mechanical properties of the bovine claw horn during lactation. Journal of Dairy Science. 2012; 95(4): 1714 - 1728.

Zainab R. ASTM D790: Standard790. Standard test methods for flexural properties of unreinforced and reinforced plastics and electrical insulating materials. 2019.