Lame cows, foot rot topics at York dairy day
BYJOYCE BUPP
Staff Correspondent
DOVER Scan a dozen
veterinary books and you may still
never find the description of a
condition called “chronic concrete
toxicosis ”
That’s the label applied by Dr
Robert Owen, Dillsburg area
veterinarian, to the weakening of
the legs and feet of dairy cattle
from the stress of constant ex
posure to concrete floors -
Ownes was one of'the featured
speakers at the York County Dairy
Day, held last Thursday at the
Dover Fire Hall About 250 York
dairymen and women turned out
for the seminar, held in con
junction with the district meeting
of Atlantic Breeders Cooperative
Owen calls bovine lameness a
severe economic loss to dairymen
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and blames some of the common
dairy cow foot problems on trends
in breeding
Postlegged cows, for instance,
where the bones of the back leg are
too straight, cannot absorb the
shock of constant walking on
concrete Cows with too much
“set,” or angling, in their legs,
have too little support, and the
bones tend to curve as they try to
hold up the weight of the animal
Both stanchion barns and free
stall layouts create their own
unique feet problems for dairy
animals
The hooves of cows tied m stalls,
where the feet stay very dry,
become hard, difficult to trim, and
tend to crack of split more readily
Animals in the constant moisture
of a free-stall operation have
chronically wet hooves, which
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become soft, and suffer from
prolonged exposure to the bac
terial organisms present in
manure and mud
While dairy cow foot problems
are generally ’ lumped together
under the umbrella term “foot
rot,” the vet says that’s a
misnumei According to Owens,
there is an actual disease known as
“foot rot,” but it’s one of the rarer
things he sees
True foot rot is an infection at the
base of the nail, or hoof, caused by
a fusanum bacteria that usually
enters through a bruise or an
abrasion The area swells, may
crack, and exudes a foul-smelling
substance. If untreated, this in
fection may eventually work its
way into the tissues of the foot
Foot rot is more common m
cattle kept m intensive housing,
where animals are over-crowded
The organisms that cause foot rot
tend to build up, so that the longer
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Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 28,1981—C29
a housing area is in use, the
greater the chances for disease
problems
Under-run soil is a foot problem
frequently caused by not keeping
feet properly trimmed and letting
the cow’s toes grow long Fracture
lines develop between the sole and
the heel, creating openings for the
bacterial invasion that can
eventually eat away the tissue of
the sole
Like most cattle foot diseases,
with an under-run sole the foot
becomes swollen and inflammed.
Diseased tissue must be peeled
aw’ay and kept dry through ban
daging until new tissue grows to
replace it When the tissue is
trimmed out, a sufficient amount
of the wall of the hoof, the hard
outside area, must be left to
support the weight of the cow when
she walks.
Another similar condition of sore
feet is an ulcer, a small infected
spot that will work its way inward
One sympton of ulcers is an area of
pink granulated tissue This is the
diseased tissue that must be
removed, and the surrounding
healthy tissue treated and kept
dry
One treatment used by Owens
for an ulcerated toe on a dairy cow
is to force the animal’s weight on
the adjacent toe of the hoof This
can be done by gluing a small,
shaped block of wood to the healthy
toe, thus raising the infected toe off
the contact surface, and removing
the stress of walking on it until the
toe heals
Eventually, the cow will wear
down the wooden “shoe”, but the
treated toe should have sufficient
time to heal before the cow’s full
weight is on the entire foot
Another common foot’affliction
in cattle is corns, a growth of tissue
between the claws, or toes, of the
hoof Corns often accompany the
conditions of splayed feet, since
the tissue can grow more readily
when the toes are spread ab
normally
Owens says the only real solution
to severe corn problems is
surgery
Dr Carl Brown, Berks County
nutritionist and former professor
at Virginia Polytechnic Institute,
was a follow-up speaker and
echoed many of the vet’s concerns
on foot problems.
He also spoke to the connection
between problem feet and
nutrition, especially in the con
dition known as “founder.” In
founder cows, the bone of the toot
sometimes grows down through
the soft hoof tissue until the bone
actually protrudes through the
hoof
Nutritionists tie this condition to
excessive carbohydrates in the
cow’s diet, often in the form of
heavily-fed concentrates Over
feeding with carbohydrates can
result in an acidosis condition, with
the acid pulling fluids from the
cow’s system, especially from the
foot area, thus weakening the hoof
structure to founder
Topdressing concentrates, or
feeding them through a magnetic
feeder system, where a minority of
the cows eat the bulk of the con
centrates, can lead to founder
conditions Overconsumption of
high-energy silages can also add to
the problem, and feeds must have
adequate levels of fiber content
Two trace minerals linked to
hoof strength are sulfur and zinc.
lodine, sometimes given to cattle
with salt, is also believed to im
prove foot conditions, although it
must not be overfed
Both Owen and Brown agreed
that good management plays a
vital role in keeping foot problems
to a minimum A regular program
of foot trimming is a necessity m
curtailing foot diseases, and
probably the best foot trimmers
are those few who pick up hooves
Trimming tables are helpful in
working on the bottom of the hoof,
although cows should be on them
only for brief periods of time
Foot baths, especially in free
stall, milking parlor operations,
can help cut down on the bacteria
buildup on feet Mudholes in
pastures and watering areas
should be filled or fenced and
slippery feedlots can be improved
by grooving or applications of fine
grit materials
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