What does extremely cow-hocked and splay-footed mean?

Answer 1

This is in reference to poor bone structure in the rear legs of a horse, bovine, sheep, or goat. Cow-hocked is in reference to the hocks (the back leg joint above the lower leg bone) that are angled inwards towards each other instead of angling straight-on, which is what good and normal hind-leg structure is supposed to be. When an animal is cow-hocked this makes the back feet turn out or be splay-footed. When an animal is splay-footed, the hooves turn towards the outside of the animal's body instead of being normally straight towards the animal's head.

When an animal is extremely cow-hocked, it will have a lot of difficulty as it gets older, if it is forced to work hard or to travel long distances because the action of the feet having to swing outward can be quite hard on the pelvic structure and cause wear in places that there shouldn't be. As the animal gets older, this may result in an animal that has trouble being mobile or even getting around normally.

An animal that has this poor leg conformation will always be culled. With horses, care will have to be taken when riding it and caring for the feet. A farrier would probably fit a horse with such bad leg structure with special shoes to help it get around easier.