Find auto parts and accessories at bargain prices, car, truck, motorcycle, SUV, RV and much more.

Pads & Shoes

Bone spavin is a bony growth within the lower hock joint of horse or cattle. It is caused by osteoarthritis, and the degree of lameness that results can be serious enough to end a horse's competitive career. more...

Home

ATV Parts

Apparel & Merchandise

Air Conditioning and Heat

Air Intake & Fuel Delivery

Brakes

Discs, Rotors & Hardware

Drums & Hardware

Master Cylinders & Parts

Other

Wheel Cylinders & Parts

Charging & Starting Systems

Computer, Chip, Cruise...

Cooling System

Decals, Emblems, & Detailing

Emission System

Engines & Components

Exhaust

Exterior

Filters

Gaskets

Gauges

Glass

Suspension & Steering

Transmission & Drivetrain

Turbos, Nitrous,...

Wheels, Tires & Parts

Personal Watercraft Parts

Racing Parts

Services & Installation

Snowmobile Parts

Vintage Car & Truck Parts

Wholesale Lots

Description of bone spavin

Bone spavin is osteoarthritis, or the final phase of degenerative joint disease (DJD), in the lower three hock joints. It usually affects the two lowest joints of the hock (the tarsometatarsal and the distal intertarsal joints), with the third joint, the proximal intertarsal, being the least likely to develop bone spavin. This condition has more than one ‘type’. Jack spavin is the term used if the lesion on the tarsal and carpal bones is large. If the pathology occurs higher in the joint than is typical, it is termed high spavin. Conversely, occult spavin does not produce any significant exostoses on the small tarsals, whilst bog spavin and blood spavin show an absence of bony changes which has been considered to make them irrelevant to those studying animal paleopathology (Baker and Brothwell, 1980).

For a detailed picture of the bones and joints within the hock, see .

Causes

Cartilage compression

Excessive compression can cause, over time, the cartilage between the upper and lower surfaces of the lower tarsal bones to become compressed and eroded. The joint spaces then become smaller, and new bone growth may occur in the area.

Uneven loading

Uneven loading causes excessive compression of the cartilage and bone on one side, and strain in the joint capsule and supporting ligaments on the other side. When the joint is repeatedly overloaded on the edge of its surface, exostoses, or "bone spurs," occur. Strain of the supporting ligaments can cause exostosis around the joint as well.

Contributing factors

There are several conformational defects that contribute to bone spavin. Those that cause uneven loading of the hocks, such as sickle hocks and cow hocks, are especially noteworthy. Poor trimming or shoeing can also contribute to bone spavin in any horse, no matter what their conformation.

Certain types of activities may also contribute to uneven or repeated loading of the lower hock joints, and thus bone spavin. These include sports that require a great deal of hock flexion (dressage), stress (jumping), sudden stops or turns (western events, such as reining), or a great deal of concussion (Standardbred racing).

"Juvenile spavin" is the occurrence of bone spavin in horses less than 3 years old. It usually occurs before the animal has done much work, and some veterinarians believe it is from osteochondrosis.