LINIEAR SIZES OF HOOFS, AREAS OF SOLES AND GROWING OF HOOFS IN TURKMENIAN KULANS OF THE ASKANIAN LOCAL POPULATION

Abstract

Material from 60 Equus hemionus kulan animals of different ages was used, 31 male and 29 female hooves. It was found that the area of the right and left hooves of Turkmen kulans does not differ sta-tistically (p>0.05). The difference in linear hoof measurements between males and females was sta-tistically insignificant. However, it can be stated that adult males have longer (9 and 12.7%) front and rear hooves than females, larger in area (25.2 and 26.4%), but the rear hooves are slightly narrower (4.8%). On average, the total area of front hooves (52.42±16.61 cm2) is larger than that of rear hooves (45.16±14.73 cm2). There is a slight asymmetry in the structure of the front and rear hooves – the front ones are rounded, the rear hooves are on average 5.9% shorter than the front ones, although the difference is not reliable. The growth of hoof horn in semi-free conditions of keeping on the terri-tory of the steppe area in adult animals is on average 1.45 cm (lim 0.2–8.2 cm). Comparison of the length and width measurements of the hooves of askanian adult Turkmen kulans with such wild ani-mals of Badkhiz showed that they are almost the same.