Lameness, Hoof, and Leg Issues in Dairy Cattle- Ernest Hovingh
1. Lameness:
from the
inside
out…
…and the outside in.
Ernest Hovingh eph1@psu.edu
Dept. of Veterinary & Biomedical Sciences Pennsylvania State University
2. Is lameness important?
Death loss
Treatment Milk loss
$24
$23 $67
Days open
$56
ased
lity
Culling $167
Estimated cost per lame cow: $346 USD (C. Guard, Cornell)
(Not included: “Frustration factor”)
4. Ethical/moral obligation
• “Dairy farming includes a contract with the
cattle - a barter of housing, feeding, safety
and comfort in exchange for milk and meat.”
. (N. Anderson, OMAFRA)
• “Animal husbandry” has been replaced by
“animal science” (B. Rollin, Colorado State Univ.)
5. McDonald’s cares about the humane treatment of animals, and we
recognize that being a responsible purchaser of food products means
working with our suppliers to ensure industry-leading animal
husbandry practices.
Our approach is based on our Animal Welfare Guiding Principles,
which express our commitment to ensuring that animals are “free
from cruelty, abuse and neglect.”
…snip…
from: www.aboutmcdonalds.com
6. Animal rights groups
• Campaigns against animal agriculture,
especially „factory farming‟
• HSUS (Humane Society of the United States), and
PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals)
– Use obvious animal abuse cases as a „hook‟ to
get people interested in their cause
7. PA Dairy Farm – in the news
Undercover Investigation Reveals Cows Suffer for Land O’Lakes
11. Where does lameness occur?
• Almost all lameness in cattle occurs in
the feet.
– Most often happens in the
outside claw of the hind feet
danaslowcarbforlife.com
12. Why does lameness occur?
• From the inside out…
– „Internal factors‟ affecting
hoof health
• From the outside in…
– „External factors‟ affecting
hoof health
13. Metabolic disorders Nutrition
• Milk fever • Lack of effective fiber
• Ketosis • Poor feeding management
• Incorrect forage:concentrate ratio
• Poor rumen buffering
• Weight loss
Death of “gram negative” bacteria
Infectious diseases Endotoxin release Infectious claw disease
• Digital dermatitis
• Metritis
Changes in blood circulation in claw • Septic arthritis
• Mastitis
• Foot rot
Laminitis
Genetics
• Weakened claw capsule • Conformation
Environment & • Horn quality
• Poor quality horn formation
management • Breakdown of support system in the claw Other?
• Trauma & handling
• Trimming
• Heat stress / cow comfort
• Cleanliness
LAMENESS
14. From the inside out…
• Internal factors affecting the
quality/health of the hoof tissue:
– Genetics
– “Laminitis”
– Loss of cushioning
– Excessive pressure
on corium
15. Internal factor: Genetics
• “Low foot angle, hocking in, and wide
rumps were associated with clinical
lameness.” (Boettcher et al, JDS 1998; also
Boelling, 1999; van der Waaij, 2005; and others)
Source: O.M. Obike, PhD thesis`
Narrow Wide
25. Altered blood flow in the feet
• Rumen acidosis death
pH
of bacteria in rumen
www.lhup.edu/smarvel
26. Nutrition & rumen acidosis*
• Excessive carbohydrate/starch (Thoefner et al., 2004)
• Sorting of ration, lack of effective fiber
• Inability to buffer pH (esp. heat stress)
* This syndrome is often referred to as
SARA – Sub-Acute Ruminal Acidosis
27. Nutrition – it‟s not all bad for feet!
• Besides a balanced ration, supplements,
additives, etc., may IMPROVE hoof
quality/health…
• …but ask for „proof‟ before spending
money!
28.
29. Altered blood flow in the feet
• Death of bacteria in rumen,
udder or uterus
• Dead bacteria release
“vaso-active” substances
• Absorbed into bloodstream
www.lhup.edu/smarvel
change blood flow in
foot
30. What is laminitis?
Inflammation/irritation/ Rumen acidosis, toxic mastitis,
injury in corium mechanical injury, etc.
Reduced/altered
Death of cells in corium
blood flow may also occur…
Reduced oxygen and
nutrients to corium
Corium stops producing
claw tissue*, or produces
poor quality claw tissue*
* Claw tissue affected may be the sole,
www.tcb-bagmfg.com white line, hoof wall, heel, or coronary band
31. Why does it matter?
• Unhealthy/damaged corium = poor quality/
defective claw tissue (sole, heel, wall, etc.) =
more susceptible to infection, mechanical
damage, etc.
32. Poor quality/defective lamina
• Poor quality/compromised white line
• Separation of sensitive/insensitive lamina
– White line disease
– P3 „sinks‟ in the claw
capsule
– “Pancake feet”
Sensitive lamina
Sole
33. P3 Outer hoof wall
This is a defective Lamina (corium)
area in the white line
Corium
White line
34. White line disease
This is a defective
• White line widens & area in the white line
separates
– Bacteria can enter and
cause infection of lamina
– Infection can “break out” at
the coronary band
35. White line infection that has
opened up at the coronary band
Travels up inside
of hoof wall
Infection entered
‘white line’ here
36. „Sinking‟ of P3 due to laminitis
Insensitive lamina Sensitive lamina
Edge of P3 bone
Weight
Increased pressure
Laminae do
on corium of the sole
not hold tightly
together Hoof wall can move outwards
Image courtesy of C. Lischer, Sweden (with modifications)
37. “Pancake feet”
• Significant separation
of lamina/white line
– Hoof wall is not held
„tight‟ to the P3 bone
– Permanent condition
– Can be trimmed to be
functional – but
requires frequent
trimming!
Normal
Pancake claw