Hoof

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Hoof

A hoof is the tip of a toe

Toe

Toes are the Digit s of the foot of an animal. Many animal species such as cats walk on their toes, and are described as being digitigrade....
of an ungulate

Ungulate

Ungulates are several groups of mammals, most of which use the tips of their toes, usually hoofed, to sustain their whole body weight while moving....
mammal

Mammal

Mammals are a class of vertebrate animals whose name is derived from their distinctive feature, mammary glands, with which they feed their young....
, strengthened by a thick horny (keratin

Keratin

Keratins are a family of fibrous protein; tough and insoluble, they form the hard but mineral structures found in reptiles, birds, amphibians and mammals....
) covering. The hoof consists of a hard or rubbery sole, and a hard wall formed by a thick nail

Nail (anatomy)

A nail is a horn -like structure at the end of an animal's finger or toe. See also claw....
rolled around the tip of the toe. The weight of the animal is normally borne by both the sole and the edge of the hoof wall. Hooves grow continuously, and are constantly worn down by use. "Hoof" is or ; the plural is either hooves ( or ), or hoofs .

Most even-toed ungulate

Even-toed ungulate

The even-toed ungulates form the mammal order Artiodactyla, the group that contains the pigs, peccary, hippopotamuses, camels, chevrotains , deer, giraffes, pronghorn, antelopes, sheep, goats, and cattle....
s (such as sheep

Sheep

#REDIRECT Domestic sheep...
, goat

Goat

The domestic goat is a subspecies of goat domesticated from the wild goat of southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the Bovidae family and is closely related to the sheep: both are in the goat-antelope subfamily Caprinae....
s, deer

Deer

Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae . A number of broadly similar animals from related families within the order even-toed ungulate are often also called deer....
, cattle

Cattle

Cattle, colloquially referred to as cows, are domestication ungulates, a member of the subfamily Bovinae of the family Bovidae. They are raised as livestock for meat , dairy products , leather and as draft animals ....
, bison

Bison

Bison is a taxonomic group containing six species of large even-toed ungulates within the subfamily Bovinae. Only two of these species still exist: the American bison and the European bison, or wisent , each with two subspecies....
and pig

Pig

Pigs, also called hogs or swine, are a genus of even-toed ungulates within the Family Suidae. The name pig, hog, or swine most commonly refers to the Domestic pig in everyday parlance, but technically encompasses several distinct species, including the Wild Boar....
s) have two main hooves on each foot, together called a cloven hoof

Cloven hoof

A cloven hoof is a hoof split into two toes. This is found on members within the mammalian order Artiodactyla. Examples of mammals that possess this type of hoof are pigs, deer and sheep....
.

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Encyclopedia

A hoof is the tip of a toe

Toe

Toes are the Digit s of the foot of an animal. Many animal species such as cats walk on their toes, and are described as being digitigrade....
of an ungulate

Ungulate

Ungulates are several groups of mammals, most of which use the tips of their toes, usually hoofed, to sustain their whole body weight while moving....
mammal

Mammal

Mammals are a class of vertebrate animals whose name is derived from their distinctive feature, mammary glands, with which they feed their young....
, strengthened by a thick horny (keratin

Keratin

Nail (anatomy)

Even-toed ungulate

Sheep

#REDIRECT Domestic sheep...
, goat

Goat

Deer

Cattle

Bison

Pig

Cloven hoof

A cloven hoof is a hoof split into two toes. This is found on members within the mammalian order Artiodactyla. Examples of mammals that possess this type of hoof are pigs, deer and sheep....
. Most of these cloven-hoofed animals also have two smaller hoofs called dew-claws a little further up the leg – these are not normally used for walking, but in some species with larger dew-claws (such as deer and pigs) they may touch the ground when running or jumping, or if the ground is soft. Other cloven-hoofed animals (such as giraffe

Giraffe

The giraffe is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest of all land-living animal species, and the largest ruminant. It is covered in large, irregular patches of yellow to black fur separated by white, off-white, or dark yellowish brown background....
s and pronghorn

Pronghorn

The pronghorn , also pronghorn antelope or prong buck, is a species of ungulate mammal native to interior western and central North America....
s) have no dew claws. In some so-called "cloven-hoofed" animals such as camel

Camel

Camels are even-toed ungulates within the genus Camelus. The dromedary, one-humped or Arabian camel has a single hump and is well known for its healthy low fat milk, and the Bactrian camel has two humps....
s, there are no hooves proper – the toe is softer, and the hoof itself is reduced to little more than a nail.

Some odd-toed ungulate

Odd-toed ungulate

The odd-toed ungulates are Herbivory and grazing mammals which compose the Order Perissodactyla. This order includes Horses, Tapirs and Rhinos....
s (equid

Equidae

Equidae is the Taxonomy Family of horses and related animals, including the extant horses, donkeys, and zebras, and many other species known only from fossils....
s) have one hoof on each foot; others (including rhinoceros

Rhinoceros

Rhinoceros , often colloquially abbreviated rhino, is a name used to group five extant species of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae....
es, tapir

Tapir

Tapirs are large Herbivory mammals, roughly pig-like in shape, with short, prehensile snouts. They inhabit jungle and forest regions of South America, Central America, and Southeast Asia....
s and many extinct species) have (or had) three hoofed or heavily nailed toes, or one hoof and two dew-claws. The tapir is a special case, with three toes on each hind foot and four toes on each front foot.