“Acknowledging the importance of hoof health and purposefully reducing lameness incidences may not position farms to maximum performance and profit in the short term, but it is a must-do if a farm is going to achieve a balance of optimal profit, efficiency and welfare by definition of sustainable,” shared Jennifer Walker, DVM, in a recent presentation.
At any given time, 25% of dairy cows in the U.S. are lame, and more than that experience lameness at some point throughout their lactation.”
Source: Progressive Dairy, September 12, 2022. Link. In animal welfare audits, locomotion is often scored as normal, moderate, or severe and tells two important things about the operation. Moderate lameness highlights multifactorial challenges on a dairy that are influencing herd health, while severe lameness highlights individual cow care.
INSIGHTS: For veterinary teams, hoof health protocols are opportunities to engage producers beyond the emergency farm calls. Note Walker’s assertions that everyone is responsible for lameness prevention, identification and treatment.