Articles

Maintenance Minimises Lameness

Sun, 13 May 2012 23:14:00 GMT

As the season is coming to an end, and with the new season is approaching, there are some important things that we need to be taking into consideration in order to maximize our cows’ hoof health through this transitional time.

A number of farmers will have cows on winter crops. It is important to introduce cows onto, and wean off, these crops gradually with an ideal transition period of at least two weeks. The time when the cows are coming off the crop is particularly important because they are close to calving and calving induces laminitis, as does a quick change of diet, so there is a bigger risk factor at that time of year. Lameness is a multi-factorial disease. The more factors that are below the mark, the more likely you are to have lameness problems. I appreciate that in some cases it is very difficult to wean cows onto a different diet especially when the cows are away grazing. However, it is important to keep these things in mind - it may be beneficial to use silage as the main part of the diet to help you with this transition. It would be a good idea to consult your nutritionist about the best ways to manage these issues.

The end of the season is also a good time to do some maintenance hoof trimming. Hoof trimming does not stop laminitis but it does help to minimise the effects of laminitis. Trimming the cows at this time of the year means that they will have well-shaped feet by the time they calf, and therefore suffer less from calving-induced laminitis.

Remember that if the weight is distributed evenly over the claw then it is less likely for the outer claw to pack up due to the combination of overload and being sick. It is a bit like having a trailer with two really old tyres. When you load this trailer, but put the entire load on one side of the trailer then the tyre on the loaded side is much more likely to burst than the tyre on the other side. If you spread the load evenly over both tyres then you are less likely to end up with a flat tyre. It may still happen but it is less likely. In the same way, if you spread the weight of the cow over the two claws rather than letting the outer claw do most of the work you are less likely to end up with a lame cow. The reason why the outer claw usually does most of the work is because it tends to grow bigger than the inner claw. This is why cows usually go lame on the outer claw. So if you trim the outer claw back to the same height as the inner claw then you are spreading the weight evenly over the two claws. It sounds like a very simple and easy process, but it actually takes a skilled hoof trimmer to get the balance right.

Veehof is in the ideal position to help you with learning how to get the “right balance” – contact us now on 0800 833463 to find out more!

White Line Disease

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 00:20:00 GMT

I recently wrote an article about the likelihood of a stone penetrating into a hoof and about the likelihood for a stone to bruise a cow’s hoof. This time I want to tackle the issue of White Line Disease. There are a couple of theories going around about what causes white line disease.

The first one says it is due to cows twisting on concrete resulting in a separation of the wall from the corium. The other one says that the white line is the weakest part of the hoof and therefore it is easy for a stone to penetrate into the white line, especially stones on the yard. Let’s look at the first theory.

Let’s imagine that a cow standing on concrete has to turn around and rotates on her leg. This creates friction on the sole of her hoof. The theory goes that the wall of the hoof pulls away from the lamina. If that is the case then I would expect to see certain things. For one, there has to be quite a wide band of wall pulled away and I would expect to see some part of the corium pulled off from the rest of the corium - just like some meat will pull off if you pull the skin off an animal or if you pull some loose skin of your hand. Instead, more often than not, I see a very small tunnel going up to the coronary band and I have never seen a bit of corium attached to the wall of the hoof.

The second theory is really the same as the idea of a stone being pushed into the sole of a hoof. If stones are being pushed into the hoof then we should see a lot more evidence of it. Cows stand on numerous stones in a day, especially the little stones that we blame for going into the sole. If this theory is right then we have to have either 100% of those little stones ending up in the hoof, in which case we don’t see enough stones in the hoof, or a smaller percentage would end up in the sole which means that at least some of the stones would leave a mark in the hoof where they have tried to penetrate. I don’t see any marks. I either see a stone in the hoof or I see no issue at all. Neither one of those theories makes any sense to me.

The white line problem doesn’t start at the bottom of the hoof. The problem starts higher up in the lamina. The live tissue becomes unhealthy and therefore grows an unhealthy wall. It may grow a little tunnel down and when that tunnel grows down to the surface at the bottom of the hoof, bacteria may work its way up towards the live tissue which, in turn, will become unhealthier, resulting in a bigger hole. This is why a white line crack always goes in the same direction as the growth direction of the claw. Most of the white line problems are on the outer claw because this claw is usually bigger than the inner claw and therefore does most of the work. If that live tissue is under the most stress, then that will be the first claw to suffer from laminitis and show symptoms much more readily than the inner claw.

Should you wish to receive more information about this subject, please contact Fred on 0800 833463!

Are Poor Tracks at Fault...

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 00:48:00 GMT

The Field Day season is in full swing again. We have been in Waimumu and are about to go to Fielding and soon it will be time for the Hamilton Field Days again. At the Field Days I sometimes get into interesting discussions with farmers about lame cows. Every time I notice that physical damage is seen as the major cause of lameness. It seems so ingrained in people’s minds that it is hard to change their thinking. Often that thinking is based on what other people say, or on what we believe is logic.

Tracks (or races), for example, are blamed for the so-called stone bruising. Somehow, it seems logical that rough tracks with more stones cause more bruising because there is more chance for a cow to stand on a stone. When we spend a lot of money on our tracks we seem to get less lameness so, therefore, the stones must be the cause. I think that there are other possible explanations that, to me, make more sense. I don’t see any evidence of bruising caused by stones. If the bruising was caused by the stones then I would expect more bruising and damage on the inner (more vulnerable) claw than on the outer claw which has a thicker sole. So, what then can be another explanation as to why poor tracks seem to have such an impact on our cows that makes more sense? I believe that time budget has a lot to do with it.

Cows need 12 hours a day for resting and 8 hours a day for eating. They also need some time for drinking and socialising. That leaves about 3 hours or so for the farmer to get the cows out of the paddock, milk them and back into the paddock again - twice a day. Many farmers don’t manage that, therefore the cows become very lethargic and that is particularly evident from now when cows are increasingly slower in getting to and from the paddock. If we work 16 hours a day every day at some point it is likely that we will burn out. I believe that that is what is happening with our cows. Improving the tracks does seem to improve cow flow, just like people generally walk easier/faster over tar seal roads than gravel ones. Improved cow flow will result in more eating and resting time for the cows in the paddock – a factor which is much more likely to reduce lameness than the perceived extra physical force that poor tracks put on cows feet in and of itself. The thing is that every cow in NZ has got laminitis to some degree. So, they have unhealthy feet. If you push cows with unhealthy feet then the physical force can aggravate the problem and you are then likely to see more lame cows!

To find out more on this subject, please give us a call on 0800 833463!!

Dairy Cow Lameness - What is Cheaper Than a Lame Cow?

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:26:00 GMT

Cowslips are lifesavers for many cows – without them many more cows would go to the works. This is assuming that the slips are put on correctly. I have seen many instances where they were not. Some dairy farmers think that cowslips are wonderful whilst others think they are too expensive and some could not make them stick on longer than a few steps. Others have commented: “just make sure you don’t have any dairy cow lameness at all!”

Working With Blocks and Lame Cows

Most of the farmers I know do not have easy answers to dairy cow lameness issues. Sometimes we come across a cow that has had a block applied to its sore claw. This clearly shows that some farmers do not understand how cow blocks or cowslips work. The idea of a block is to glue it underneath the healthy claw so that the sore claw is relieved from carrying any weight, allowing it to heal faster. The cow should then walk better immediately as her pain has been greatly reduced. A block should last on a cow for three to four weeks. This gives time for the damaged claw to heal.

Our company sells the Demotec FuturaPad claw blocks and the Bovi-Bond Block Adhesive and blocks instead of cowslips. This is mainly because they are easy to work with, are nowhere near as weather dependant in the time they need to set (can be used on cold or hot days) and, most importantly, we can place the block much better on the claw.
Often you find with the shoe-type blocks that they sit too far forward. This makes the heel part of the block wear too fast or they may even collapse in that part of the block. The cow has no choice but to walk on the heel of her foot which puts an enormous strain on the tendon keeping the pedal bone down. This can cause so much stretch in some cases that there is a degree of lasting damage.

Correct Application of a Claw Block

With a FuturaPad or Bovi-Bond block you can place the block as far back as you like, though obviously you would not want to place it too far back. The back part of the block should be flush with the heel of the cow. It doesn’t matter at all if the toe is sticking over the front as long as the heel is flush. This way the block will wear more evenly and that is also better for the ligaments. The block should also be placed flush with the inside of the claw and needs to be as flat as possible and not on an angle. Remember that the block is there to support the weight of the cow – that can only be achieved if the block is placed square and not too far forward.

The price of a block is often challenged. It does pay to shop around: there can be big variations in the prices of the same products. But, even if the blocks were sold for $100 each they would still be cheaper than a lame cow! We have recently become a distributor for the Bovi-Bond block. This is a fantastic product. We will also have an amazing launch deal on these blocks at the Southern Field Days. So if you are in the area pop in to check them out.

For more information and tips on working with blocks and on either of the two above-mentioned products, contact us on 0800 833463.

Veehof Dairy Services - Dairy Cow Lameness Experts

Height difference in dairy cows hooves confirmed by trial….

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 00:44:00 GMT

It is official! The outside claw on the hind foot of dairy cows is higher than the inside claw on 99.9% of cows in NZ. This is something that you already may have realized but now it is backed up with the research trial that we are doing.

Recently we did the measuring on our third and last research farm. That makes the total number of cows included into our research 2864. In case you were not aware of the trial that we are conducting, we are preventatively trimming up to 500 cows on each of our three trial farms. There are another 500 cows in the control mob on each of those farms. As the farmers are recording all their lameness in dairy cows, we can establish the effects and benefits of preventative hoof trimming in NZ. If you want to know the results then I suggest you keep an eye out on our website as we are going to keep updates of our trial published on it.

How the measuring for the claws are performed

Because we needed to split the cows into two equal mobs we needed to measure the height differences between the inside and the outside claw of each of the cows included in our trial. Even though the average height difference varied slightly per farm, they all showed the outside claw higher (or thicker) than the inside claw. This opens up a whole new set of arguments about why the lameness in dairy cow issues issues we face are not caused by physical damage. Let me explain by asking you a question. When you treat lameness in dairy cows, which claw is she usually have lameness in dairy cows on? I am sure that you would have to agree that it is usually the outer claw. We have just established that the outer claw is the thicker claw. If that claw is thicker then that would mean that the live tissue in the outer claw is more protected from outside forces than the inner claw, because it has a thicker layer of hoof protecting it. So why then is the outer claw is more damaged?

There is no reason to believe that the inside claw encounters less stones on our tracks and yards than the outer claw. Just to add to that, if we make that outer claw thinner to get it to the same thickness as the inner claw then you would expect more lameness in dairy cows because we have taken a layer of protection away from the live tissue in the outer claw. Even though it is still early into our trial, we can already see that this is not the case. As a matter of fact the amount of lameness in dairy cows is less.

The trial proven and completed

With our trial we have already proven, and will more strongly prove as the trial goes on, that there is a lot more going on with lameness in dairy cows than physical damage. Put our website (www.veehof.co.nz) in your favourites and keep your self updated with the results.

If you want to make use of the benefits of preventative hoof trimming, or need lameness in dairy cows treated, just give us a call on 0800 833 463 (VEEHOF).

Lameness in Dairy Cows - A Quality Team Aids Prevention

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 02:13:00 GMT

Quality is the most important added value that good hoof trimmers bring to a farm to prevent diseases such as lameness in dairy cows etc. That doesn’t mean that farmers are hopeless at trimming cow’s feet themselves. It just means that in most cases it can be done better. I used this analogy before and I will use it again now...

A Story - Lameness in Dairy Cows

If I spend a day at a dentist and he shows me everything he knows such as drilling, pulling and filing teeth, then I may party know what to do...but won’t necessarily do a good job. If I go and buy myself a nice comfortable chair (because that is the only comfort I would be able to offer!) and set myself up as a budget dentist in our showroom here on the main road would you like to be my client?

What if I do the first 3 visits for free? I know that hoof trimming is not as complicated as dentistry but there is a whole lot more to hoof trimming than most people realize. Getting a qualification in Holland in professional hoof trimming takes about 14 months and even then there are a number of students that fail.

The Value of Having a Professional Hoof Trimmer

When it comes to the value of hoof trimmers I think it is important to realize that sorting out lameness in dairy cows issues. Issues on the farm is not an issue that hoof trimmers can sort out by themselves.

The aim is to minimize lameness in dairy cows in the first place. Just treating lame cows all the time is just being the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff all the time. The prevention of lameness in dairy cows requires a team effort of which hoof trimmers are an important part. I would also consider vets and nutritionist/farm advisors to be important team members.

Team Members for Preventing Lameness in Dairy Cows

Vets are needed to supply and advise on drugs and do operations like amputating a claw and removing growths between claws as they are qualified for those tasks.

Nutritionist/Farm advisers are needed to assist the farmer in nutrition since that is a major if not the biggest cause of lameness in NZ.

Farm advisers must also talk and advise about the physical aspects on the farm. These are issues that can escalate the problems that imbalanced diets cause.

For this team to function well there needs to be good communication between the parties. With a combined effort I am sure that every farm can minimize their lameness in dairy cows issues. I don’t believe that we can avoid it all together but we can get it under control.

If you need advice on building a team of experts or have any specific hoof trimming questions...give me a call on 0800 833 463 or click the button below to request a free quote for our Hoof Trimming Services.

Fred Hoekstra - Lameness in Dairy Cows Expert

Height difference in dairy cows hooves confirmed by trial….

Dairy Cow Lameness - Drug Use

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 02:14:00 GMT

Are you a druggy? I mean are you using too many antibiotics on your cows. It is not a good idea to reach out for drugs as soon as you see a lame cow. I know that some of you do that. Lame dairy cows hardly ever need antibiotics. Even when you trim a cow and you see some pus coming out of the wound you often don’t need penicillin. On the other hand there are cases of dairy cow lameness that only antibiotics can fix. So what is the difference?

Dairy Cow Lameness - the Autonomy of the Foot

Let's have another look at the autonomy of the foot. Around all the live tissue inside a body grows the skin.The function of the skin is to be a barrier between the outside world and the live tissue inside the body. Most of the skin grows hair but at the bottom of the feet this skin grows the horny tissue that we call “claw”. When we trim a cows foot and we see some pus coming out it is more likely that it comes from the outside of the skin (corium). In this case it is still a superficial infection and the corium is still doing that part of its job properly. It just isn’t growing horn.

However, if the bacteria manage to get through the corium then you have an issue that requires antibiotics in dairy cow lameness. In these cases the foot would be swollen up and warm. Your veterinarian can advise you which antibiotics to use. There is a big difference between an infection in the inter-digital space (foot rot) and an infection in just one claw, which often enter into the claw at the white line in the heel area. Different types of antibiotics should be used. However, because dairy cow lameness is often a superficial issue antibiotics are not always necessary

Dairy Cow Lameness - Removing Weight from the Claw

Cows that just have a superficial infection just need a proper trim. The idea is to remove as much weight as possible from that claw so as to allow the air to dry the wound out; if it is not possible to create enough height difference naturally then you can glue a claw block to the healthy claw to remove all the weight off the sore one. In these cases Penicillin won’t help, potentially making things worse and even put you at risk. Let me explain...

If penicillin is used a lot then the bacteria begins to build up a resistance to it,especially when the course isn’t finished and cows are getting only half the doses that they need. With these new immune bacteria we now have a super bug. People can get infected by these bacteria and if that happens what are the doctors going to use to get rid of it? The usual antibiotics don’t work anymore. You may think that this is a bit farfetched. Well it is already happening. You would have heard of the supper bug in the hospitals. Scientists believe that the MRSA (staphylococcal aureus) bacterium is being spread by farm staff as well as in hospitals. This just shows that we need to be careful with the use of antibiotics when we treat dairy cow lameness. Only use it when you really need it. Thanks for reading this article on dairy cow lameness. To find out more about preventing dairy cow lameness call us on 0800 833 463.

Fred Hoekstra - Dairy Cow Lameness Expert

Lameness in Dairy Cows - A Quality Team Aids Prevention

Chronic Laminitis in Replacement Dairy Heifer Calves

Tue, 08 Mar 2011 22:53:00 GMT

Summary: In this short article, Richard Nortje discusses an unusual cause of lameness in a group of dairy heifer calves

In dairy cattle, acute laminitis is most often caused by over-feeding high-energy feeds, with chronic changes developing usually after multiple bouts of disease. Calves and heifers with laminitis usually have been ‘pushed’ for growth and fed excessive amounts of easily fermentable feeds (e.g. rye or wheat) or fed left-over lactating cow TMR. Overseas, laminitis has been described in both beef and dairy calves (Greenough et al 1990, Bargai et al 1992), with both authors suggesting that high protein or starch intakes were crucial in the development of the condition.

History and clinical findings

In November 2009, we had a call from one of our dairy farmers to examine a group of 38 ten to twelve week-old Friesian calves with ‘long toes’. We examined the four worst affected calves. All had difficulty in rising and were reluctant to move. While standing, they often extended their forelegs and tucked their hind legs beneath them. Excessively long claws were noticed, as well as cracking of the toes and wall. A diagnosis of clinical laminitis was made.

Corrective foot trimming was attempted. Severe sole bruising and haemorrhage were observed at trimming. However trimming did not appear to be very successful; two calves were euthanased in the following week.

The calves were re-examined in January; of the 36 remaining animals 29 had chronic hoof changes typical of laminitis such as laminitic grooves in the dorsal wall.

Feeding History

During their first weeks of life the calves had been fed 4L per day of milk replacer with ad lib straw. No calf pellets were fed at any stage. From three weeks of age the calves had been fed an ad lib barley/pea mix (the farmer estimated that about 2-3kg / calf /day was consumed) with ad lib straw. The aim of this regime was to cut costs by feeding grain instead of pellets.

Outcome

Upon discussion with the farmer and two veterinarians from our practice; it was decided not to keep the calves as dairy replacements. The calves were separated based on severity of laminitic changes – good, marginal or severe. The least affected animals were selected to fatten up for slaughter as adults (no grain to be fed!). We also investigated the possibility of putting the worst affected animals back on milk to be sold as veal.

Discussion

In most previous reports of laminitis in calves the condition has been attributed to dietary factors. These calves had access to ad lib barley/pea mix; Svensson and Bergsten (1997) reported laminitis in calves fed on 1kg/calf/day of concentrates (oats/rye/wheat mix), the calves on this farm were eating two to three times that amount. Unfortunately the company which supplied the grain mix was not able to provide a sample to test for protein and starch content but a feed-based origin remains highly likely, particularly as the farmer had sold approximately 40 calves from the same mob to another farmer in the area, before they had been given access to the barley/pea mix, and no laminitis in these calves had been observed.

This was an unusual case for us as none of our veterinarians have encountered laminitis in calves before. With increased cost-cutting on many farms, particularly in the area of calf feeding, this may not be the last.

Editor’s note – if you do see any similar cases we would be interested in frozen feet from such animals – contact the editor at r.laven@massey.ac.nz

Richard Nortje Southern Rangitikei Vet services, Bulls

References

Bargai U, Shamir I, Lublin A, Bogin E. Winter outbreaks of laminitis in dairy calves: aetiology and laboratory, radiological and pathological findings Veterinary Record 131, 411, 1992.

Greenough PR, Vermunt JJ, McKinnon JJ, Fathy FA, Berg PA, Cohen RDH. Laminitis-like changes in the claws of feedlot cattle Canadian Veterinary Journal 31, 202, 1990.

Svensson C, Bergsten C. Laminitis in young dairy calves fed a high starch diet and with a history of bovine viral diarrhoea virus infection. Veterinary Record 140, 574-577, 1997.

Cow Handling Part 2 - Operator Safety and Control

Tue, 08 Mar 2011 22:52:00 GMT

Cow Handling Part 2 - Operator Safety and Control - Fred Hoekstra

In my last article I was writing about handling cows and the importance of them being comfortable. To refresh I suggested that there are 3 points to keep in mind when we deal with our cows.

1. The cow needs to be comfortable.
2. The operator needs to be safe at all times.
3. The operator needs to be in control at all times.

I will now cover the second and third points.

2. The operator needs to be safe at all times.

In this case, being safe and being comfortable go together. If you are uncomfortable you are unsafe and if you are unsafe than you are not comfortable unless you don’t know you are unsafe. This has happened to many people who have told us stories about breaking arms, loosing teeth or lying unconscious behind a cow because the cow kicked back. In many, if not all, of those cases the incident occurred because there were too many bars in the way, or the operator was kneeling down behind the cow reaching out to the back feet - certainly a combination of these two situations could end up with major repercussions.

When trimming a back leg of a cow the leg should be lifted from the hock and the trimmer should always stand beside the cow, in the same way a horse farrier stands beside the horse. The cow’s leg should be lifted high enough so that you can comfortably lean on the cow with your back pretty much upright or slightly bent forward. You can achieve this by going through your knees. Leaning onto the cow and keeping your back straight is the key to comfortable and safe trimming. You can keep that up for much longer than crouching down behind the cow. Also the physical touch gives the cow a sense of security and helps her to relax. This is another reason why you should have no bars or pipe work in the way.

Trimming should always be done with sharp knives. Blunt knives are very dangerous because you need to use a lot of force to get through the hoof. The quality of the job depends a lot on the sharpness of the knife. If you struggle to get your knives sharp give us a call. We will do it for free. After we have sharpened your knives it is even more important to ALWAYS keep your other hand BEHIND the knife. This is for very obvious reasons and yet I see many people not obeying that rule when I run hoof trimming courses. Some farmers admit this when they send us their knives for sharpening. Some of the stories would make you cringe. When we sharpen your hoof knives they are like razor blades and not keeping this rule can cause a lot of harm.

One last thing I want to mention about keeping safe is that when you trim a front foot always have one of the back feet raised. This way it is a lot harder for a cow to kick forward and she will also be standing in a much more stable position.

3. The Operator Needs To Be In Control At All Times

The third point is about the operator being in control. Cows sense whether somebody is nervous and lacking confidence. When a cow is tied up in a crush you should always be able to lift or lower her using winches without handles flying around by themselves. A braked winch with reduction is the answer here. Good facilities and some proper training are essential elements to being safe and gaining the confidence and control needed to do a good job.

If you wish to talk about any of the matters raised in this article, need help with trimming or equipment please give us a call on 0800 833 463.

Fred Hoekstra

Hoof Care Expert

Veehof Dairy Services

“Leading the way to healthy herds in New Zealand by raising the standard of hoof care”

Cow Handling Part 1 - The Importance of Cow Comfort

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 08:54:00 GMT

How do you handle your cows individually? Can you restrain your cow so that she is comfortable and you are safe?

This is a major issue on dairy farms. I went to a farm a little while ago to trim 20 -30 cows. For some reason the farmer had started doing some cows before I got there. When I turned up he came out and greeted me and helped me set up. There was a cow lying down in the vet race. She had gone down as the farmer was trimming her feet. She was still down by the time I left and as far as I know she never got up again. This is not uncommon and I would like to raise this topic to help you avoid such accidents.

There is a right way and a wrong way to restrain cows. When a cow is being restrained there are some principles that always apply:

1. The cow needs to be comfortable
2. The operator needs to be safe at all times
3. The operator needs to be in control at all times.

In this article I will be dealing with point one. If the cow is not comfortable she will be a lot more unsettled. This seems common sense but is often overlooked.

Consider the surface the cow is standing on. Obviously a slippery surface is not good but an equally or maybe even more important point is that the cow must be standing on a flat or sloping up surface. No matter what crush you use, a cow does not like it if she is facing downhill and you are lifting her back feet. She will fight you all the way.

Purpose built hoof trimming crushes have belly straps to support the cow when she loses her grip and falls over. An added effect of this belly strap is that it calms the cow down. Cows relax when you put pressure on their belly. That is why you always see a cow hanging in a sling rather than standing up. Some well known crushes in NZ have two belly straps – one under the brisket and one just in front of the udder. The brisket one is good but if a cow sits down on the second one she will be very uncomfortable as there is no rib cage there to support her and all the pressure is going straight on the gut. Cows tend to kick at it but are not standing up so they can’t release the pressure.

Another thing I would like to mention is the fact that most people like to have a leg tied up just above the claw against a bar. It makes the leg sit more rigid but if the cow should go down, for whatever reason, there is a very high risk of injuries such as broken legs or dislocated hips - this is what happened to the cow I mentioned earlier. Lifting from the hock is much more comfortable for the cow and because she can still lean on the raised leg there is very minimal risk of injury.

In the next article I will discuss points two and three. If you would like to discuss these issues further with us please call us on 0800 833 463.

Fred Hoekstra

Hoof Care Expert

Veehof Dairy Services

0800 833 463

Lameness in Dairy Cows and Dietary Fibre - Study Findings Part Two

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 02:16:00 GMT

Herd's message: "No hurry, No worry"

A survey of Canterbury, North Otago and South-land dairy farmers highlighted herd management practices that appear to have an influence on lameness in dairy cows. The survey was carried out as part of a study into the relation-ship between dietary fiber and lameness in dairy cows currently being carried out in Canterbury

Nutritionist Wybe Kuperus says 342 questionnaires were sent out and, based on 108 replies, it appears there may be relationship between how cows are handled on the way to the dairy and the incidence of feet problems. Cows that were pushed along. both on the track and in the yard showed increased lameness. Cows that had to walk further than 1 km to the dairy also showed higher incidence of feet problems. The message seems to be 'no hurry, no worry', he says.

Less lameness in Dairy Cows

About 43% of herds were al-ways allowed to walk to the dairy at their own pace. and this group showed less lameness than the 57% of herds that were not always allowed to walk at their own pace.

In the group that was always allowed to walk at their own pace, 56.5% had a lameness incidence of between 0% to 5%, 37% had an incidence of 6% to 15%. and 6.5% had greater than 15% of the herd lame.

When cows were not always allowed to walk at their own pace. 24.6% of the herds had 0% to 5% lameness, but 62.3% fell into the 6% to 15% lameness category. and 13.1% had more than 15% of the herd lame.

Higher use of the backing gate to push cows into the dairy also appears to increase feet problems. In herds where the backing gate was moved more than 10 times, 24% had more than 15% of the herd lame.

If the backing gate was moved less than 10 times. 5% of the herds suffered more than 15% lameness in dairy cows, and 43% had an incidence of 0% to 5% lameness in the herd. Survey figures also showed that walking less than 1km to the dairy was associated with less lameness. This may be because more walking increases the chance of mechanical damage and increases the chance of human impatience in bringing the herd in.

Other Statistics - Dietary Fiber and Lameness in Dairy Cows Survey

Other factors which became apparent in the survey:

Small herds are less vulnerable to lameness in dairy cows
Herds with more overseas Holstein-Friesian genetics may be more vulnerable to high incidence of lameness.
Herds fed grain recorded more lameness in dairy cows.
Herds walking on tracks with a high crown (over 50cm height difference between middle of the track and side) had less lameness compared with herds walking on tracks with lower crowns.
Herds fed brassicas seem more vulnerable to lameness, with Southland herds fed brassicas showing increased lameness during spring. This may be due to rumen upsets, with change of diet to pasture leading in turn to laminitis and reduced claw quality.

Mr Kuperus says while survey results highlight possible relation-ships. more work needs to be done to prove cause and effect

He says application has been made to Dairy InSight to carry out research in Southland on the impact the transition from brassicas to pasture, and vice versa, has on hoof health.

The survey results were compiled and analysed by research assistant Marius-Hans Troost from Lincoln University. He and Mr Kuperus are working with consultant and veterinarian Helwi Tacoma and Fred Hoekstra of Veehof Dairy Services on the Canterbury study into the effect of dietary fiber on lameness in dairy cows.

Fred Hoekstra - Dietary Fiber and Lameness in Dairy Cows Expert

Dairy Cow Lameness - Drug Use

Lameness in Dairy Cows and Dietary Fibre Study Findings

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 02:17:00 GMT

Lameness in Dairy Cows - Statistics

Lameness in dairy cows could be costing Southland dairy farmers a staggering $1,264.00/cow and their Canterbury counterparts $841.00 per cow.

As part of a trial looking at the impact of adding fiber to the diet on the incidence of lameness, 342 farms in Canterbury, North Otago and Southland were sent questionnaires on the disorder.

Nutritionist Wybe Kuperus, farm consultant and veterinarian Helwi Tacoma, Fred Hoekstra of Veehof Dairy Services, and research assistant Marius-Hans Troost of Lincoln University, are involved in the study, which is funded by Dairy In Sight.

While the fiber and lameness in dairy cows trial is continuing, results of the survey were analyzed by Troost & Kuperus. Based on 108 responses, estimates were made of the number of lameness in dairy cows in each region and the impact lameness had on milk solids production. increased labor requirements, in-calf rates. increased culls, and cost of treatment. For an average Southland farm of 461 cows (based on Live- stock Improvement figures for 2002-2003) with 10% of the herd lame at some time during the season, the impact will be a loss of $58,272.00 in income.

Lameness in Dairy Cows - How much are income are you losing

In Canterbury the average farm will lose $45,408.00 income, based on 10% lameness in dairy cows and an average herd size of 544 cows. For larger farms with higher rates of lameness in dairy cows, the loss of income can be well over the $100,000.00 mark.

Mr Kuperus says putting a dollar value on the true cost of lameness will be a sobering experience for dairy farmers, and highlights the importance of dealing with the disorder. It can put the cost of repairing tracks into perspective and be a motivator for being patient when bringing cows in for milking and pushing them through the yard.

Southland was estimated to have 26,222 lameness in dairy cows at some time during the 2002-2003 season, based on farmers' returns and Livestock Improve-ment with lameness in dairy cows census data indicating the average Southland herd size is 461, with 632 herds in the region. The total per cow costs were calculated from the information supplied by farmers through the survey. Broken into component costs, lameness in dairy cows is estimated to cost a Southland farmer $832.00 in milk production losses, $26.34 in extra labour, $319.75 in lost fertility due to poorer in-calf rates, $73.45 in culled cows, and $12.40 treatment costs.

Reduced milk production is based on the reported average drop in MS production of 225kg MS/cow at $3.70/kg MS. Additional labour cost is based on an extra 1.8 hours spent dealing with lameness in dairy cows, at $15.00 per hour. Reduced fertility is based on a 64% drop in in-calf rates due to lameness in dairy cows, multiplied by $500.00 per cow (the difference in value of an in-calf cow and a cull cow). Lame cows are 14.69% more likely to be culled, costing farmers an average of $73.45.

Lameness in Dairy Cows - Canterbury Survey Results

Canterbury: Based on survey returns. a lame cow in Canterbury is estimated to cost $507.00 in reduced MS. with 137kg less MS/cow at $3.70/kg MS. Farmers estimated extra labour at 1.6 hours/cow, bringing added labor cost to $23.33 per cow if the wage is set at $15.00 per hour. Canterbury farmers believed their in-calf rate reduction was less than their Southland counterparts, with survey results indicating lame cow's reduces the in-calf rate by 43%. This equates to a cost of $212.80 per cow.

Canterbury are slightly more likely to be culled because of lameness in dairy cows, costing farmers $85.09 per cow. Treatment costs are the same at $12.40 per cow, giving a total of $840.90 per cow.

Wybe Kuperus, former Dexcel nutritionist, has taken up a new position with Vitec Nutrition as manager of the sales team. He will see out 2 Dexcel projects he has been involved in; the South Island pasture project, measuring pasture production and quality compo nents. and the lameness trial looking at the inclusion of fiber in the diet of a Canterbury dairy herd. He joined Dexcel in 2001.Thank you for reading this article.

Fred Hoekstra

Lameness in Dairy Cows and Dietary Fibre - Study Findings Part Two