Animal Health & Welfare

Most lameness is associated with claw horn lesions which disrupt the integrity of the horny capsule which protects the soft, underlying tissues of the foot from environmental challenge.

The primary risk factor for the development of claw horn lesions is calving. In a dairy herd this is impossible to avoid but its impact can be reduced by giving consideration to other risk factors which influence lameness and interact with calving to make the problem worse at this time. Therefore anything that can be done to minimise the challenge to cows feet around calving will reduce lameness. It is particularly important to reduce the challenge to first lactation heifers since animals which are lame in their first lactation are three times more likely to be lame in their second lactation than heifers that were sound throughout. Environmental, social, nutritional and other management factors will all influence the incidence and prevalence of lameness. Training heifers to use cubicles before they enter the main milking herd, housing cows on straw for as long as possible around calving, making changes in diet which are inevitable at this time slowly and housing heifers as a separate group will all help to reduce lameness.

Given a comfortable environment the heifer can adapt to her new environment remarkably quickly. However where the space may be cramped or the heifer has to compete with older, bigger cows then problems are likely to occur. Other risk factors for the development of claw horn lesions which can be avoided or minimised are:

• Standing on concrete for prolonged periods especially around calving. This can be avoided by making sure that there are sufficient numbers of comfortable cubicles available and avoiding large milking groups. Further information on cubicles can be found under the housing page in the dairy welfare section.

• Traumatic injury to the claw horn. This can be done by ensuring that indoor walkways are not slippery, especially at corners, handling cattle quietly and allowing them to move at their own pace and making sure tracks, gateways and water troughs are well drained and free from sharp stones and depressions. Further information on cow tracks can be found under the housing page in the dairy welfare section.

• Poor claw shape or claw horn quality. Overgrown claws can be avoided by regular trimming.

• Disruption of optimal rumen fermentation. Feeding a total mixed ration, ensuring adequate levels of effective fibre in the ration will promote rumination and saliva production.

• Selective breeding strategies that do not consider lameness. Physical characteristics of the feet and legs in breeding stock are strongly hereditary so selecting animals with desirable foot and leg characteristics can minimise future problems with lameness. The Profitable Lifetime Index (£PLI) developed by SAC and others may help to improve lameness by including it as a trait in the index. More information on £PLI can be found under Breeding for Health and Welfare pages in the dairy welfare section.

An SAC study has found that lameness and knee swellings are more severe in zero-grazed systems than systems which house cattle for only part of the year. Straw courts are associated with the lowest severity of lameness. More information on this study can be found under ‘Behavioural studies relating to the welfare of intensively managed dairy cows’ to the right.

Infectious causes of lameness are increasingly important, in that they are treatable and tend to have a high prevalence and are a major cause of nuisance for the dairy farmer and poor welfare for the cows. The disorders discussed below are increased by dirty underfoot conditions. As such, attention to floor cleanliness and type is an essential part of any treatment and control programme.

Foul Of The Foot

• Foul of foot is responsible for around 5% of all lameness cases
• It is caused by bacterial infection with Fusobacterium necrophorum
• It requires slight trauma between the digits to allow infection to develop, so tends to be more frequent in straw yards than cubicles

Treatment:

• Suitable antibiotic injection effective at early stages

Prevention:

• Avoid damage to interdigital space by ensuring walkways are clear of loose stones or sharp edges
• Ensure that good hygiene is maintained and walking surfaces are kept clean
• Provision of a formalin footbath for cattle in a frequently used area can help minimise infection (Formalin concentration = 3-5%)

Digital Dermatitis

Most dairy farmers in the UK now have Digital Dermatitis (DD) as a cause of lameness. On some farms DD affects more than 30% of the total herd. However only around a third of these animals will actually show clear signs of lameness. Once in a herd there is no reliable way to eradicate DD as yet but it is possible to control it. Those in the fortunate position of being clear of DD should make every effort to remain that way. This needs close attention to herd biosecurity.

Prevention:

• The biggest risk for bringing DD into a ‘clean’ herd is the movement of stock on and off the farm as many farms don’t check the feet or footbath animals coming into the herd. Ideally the feet of purchased cattle (cows or bulls) should be treated with antibiotic by footbathing or spraying, quarantined for a minimum of 2 weeks and footbathed again before mixing with other stock. More information on footbathing is given in the tabs above.

• DD can also potentially be spread by foot trimmers and veterinarians unless all possible hygiene measures are taken to clean and disinfect knives and other equipment. More information on avoiding cross-infection when trimming is given above.

• There is also a possibility that the same organism that is responsible for DD in cattle causes contagious ovine digital dermatitis (CODD) in sheep too, so co-grazing and overwintering sheep on cattle pasture could potentially spread DD.

The best way to control DD is to keep cows clean and to footbath regularly.

Footbathing should be considered a means of controlling lameness rather like teat dipping is used to prevent mastitis. Ideally it should be carried out in the same routine manner, the frequency depending on the level of infectious lameness in the herd.

Footbaths must be:

• Used regularly, as frequently as the DD challenge demands (eg after each milking or weekly)
• Easy to set-up and clean out without adding more than 10 minutes to the milking routine.
• Far enough from the parlour so as not to disrupt cow flow and slow down milking.
• Used with a pre-wash (hose or preferably bath) to reduce contamination of the solution.
• Changed every 250 cows.
• Have somewhere clean for the cows to stand after going through the footbath.

DD thrives in damp, dirty conditions so keep passageways clean and minimise cow contact with slurry. Cows which are kept clean and dry are 20 times less likely to get DD. Keep cubicles clean and comfortable too to encourage lying and don’t overstock; having more cows than cubicles increases the risk of lameness.

Trim cow’s feet at least once a year. This limits both claw horn and infectious lameness provided that the cows are trimmed by someone trained in trimming techniques. Trimming by untrained staff can do more harm than good.Good biosecurity and maintaining good footbathing routines are the most important for preventing and controlling DD.

Further Information

Two free booklets are available from Defra:

PB4020 Lameness in dairy cattle

PB1151 Lameness in beef and dairy followers

The MDC also provides a booklet on minimising slurry pooling in dairy housing. A link to information on this booklet is provided on the right under related internet links.For comprehensive information on lameness research, visit the SAC and University of Liverpool lameness site using the link to the right.