  Creating finite element models for simulation of bone behaviour, fracture
occurrence and propagation requires feeding the system with adequate mechanical
data. To date, little is known about the mechanical behaviour of long canine
bones, and in cases of modelling a bone-breakage scenario the ultimate strain
at failure still needs to be determined. Extrapolation from human literature or
other species is uninteresting as differences of mechanical properties between
species are expected (Vahey et al, 1987) [1]. Our purpose was to measure the
ultimate tensile strain of canine long bones by Digital Image Correlation
(DIC), an optical technique to measure strain under load and a promising
measurement method for our purpose. Tension tests of cortical bone strips and
flexion tests of entire bones were performed, and the ultimate tensile strain
was measured and compared between different specimen and testing scenarios.
