,_i”^ va ” aUgh ’ Bovtoe Podiatrist Talks While He Works u- , “I was on a roll with those he pulls no punches about outlin- 5 K ‘TL cows. It was a traumatic thing to ing that philosophpy. SSm afarm bCm ’ do -” be ttmmhea., “But forming "Legs and feet in cows have Stopping <*e day at Kingstead was a business We don't have Dmhvik Vim iv«n aeavon. good flat-boned cattle any more. svlvanfotoSSrLS JdS Slk Kavanaugh’s early years of We never used to trim the feet of "Hie idea of beine able to imnrove trinipiillB, the profession was one two-year-olds. Our genetic base is Mssrs; £f^sEr sofb^- der Ernie’s iSmictiOT Sfo came an industry introduction that Then he adds with a classic 1974 1,6 outspokcnly P^P o ™* “ the touch of Kavanaugh dry humor, brining of an upswing in the “We’re just so grateful; Acre’s no 8 “Bd ** , - Along came the magnetic us foot tnnuners. cLnT 8 feeder,” says Kavanaugh,” and “I often trim feet 364 days a Rut W Kavananoh KaH some of those would P** ll in year. Christmas is the only day ButJocKavanaughhadalways and st t d L f ve never foot * B ' wanted his own herd of dairy fn.mrw ” i ' V , “ Ul cows In iQXi he and his wife . ro “ n<ter * there are some days when I only Jeannette nnihaLTa S-n Tin oflier &ctons hc atlributes to do 15 or 16 head, due to the seri westem Maryland's Garrett Coun fhc downfoU of cattle foot health ous amount of foot work they ra- MaryMd SOrottCOun- include the use of Total Mixed Ra- quire.” he adds ?S Cn^and^ C,U S in for die bovine herd had sunred° S a feed "! g * nd for PT oduc - 8P«a« makes him a stickler for 15 OW-TOund c l vcls of . 8™“ perfection in his work. Each ani mg quicKiy, mierni rates were year-olds. Those type radons have hoof. Usine socialized tools Ik running to levels as highas22 per- so much starch i n them that if af- trims away unhealthy tissue, pares H e^r^hl^. llk n V f S 10 *i 1 » pcr fects * e circulation to die leg,” away misshapen puts of a*foot, hundredweight. Bebeving that re- says this longtime observer of cat- removes imbedded stones or gra mammg md« business dc feet and their problems. vel and St e S ** addition to fecdin 8 and hous- that have needed aggressive trim tte to scUthc ing changes. Kavanaugh also ming due to serious infection are s“* 10 65 md | an B blames modem dairy breeding wrapped with heavy-duty bandag head head of young stock philosophy with putting hoof trim- ing materials to keep them clean averaged »i,iuu. ming service in such demand. And and dry while healing. Before setting the “patient” back uptight and releasing her. Kavanaugh meticulously checks with a small, flat footboard that every part of the outer rim of the trimmed, shaped hoof touches the board. If it does not, he will retrim until satisfied that the hoof is shaped to his perfectionist “A properly-trimmed foot should leave a perfect ‘horseshoe shape’ track behind when that cow walks away,” he says. Foot warts, a plague which af fects many dairy herds, create many of the problems Kavanaugh attacks daily on the hoof end of his patients. While the virus remains dormant in cold weather, warming weather can generate an epidemic of the painful warts. He counsels his clients to deve- Kavanaugh trims and shapas a dairy cow’s foot to remove damage wrought by viral warts, stone damage or a variety of other afflictions which cause the animals to limp. .ig Jng pi v problems are carefully wrapped and bandaged after trea ment to keep the foot clean and dry while It heals. A sharp, curved hoof knife is one of the key tools of a foot trimmer’s trade. On a few rare occasions, Joe (Cava naugh has missed a hoof and carved Into his own hand, one of the physical hazards of the profession. lop a schedule of at least semi* weekly use of a footbath. He also blends a mix of oxytetracycline with sterile water for use in spray bottles to spray ontffected his clients to use as a safe treatment on cows’ feet as the animals move through milking parlors. He also blends a mix of oxyte tracycline with sterile water for use in spray bottles to spray on af fected hooves, which he recom mends to his clients to use as a safe treatment on cows’ feet as the animals move through milking parlors. “Barnyards need to be kept scraped and clean and cows turned out on ground as much as possible in good weather. A couple of hours of sunshine on a cow’s foot ImaMer' Fdwilhg, ’SitiMiy, > WWh a l > helps tremendously. The more time out on dirt the better,” he suggests. “God didn’t make cows’ feet to stand 24 hours a day in a sloppy, damp environment. Wet problems.” Kl “ As might be expected, working with the kicking equipment of a cow has had its dangerous mo ments in Kavanaugh’s 24 years of experience. “I got kicked in the head one time that you could hear my skull crack. I looked away while fasten ing down a cow’s foot to talk to the owner and she got me,” he ex plains, adding with a grin, “I still talk, but I never look away from those feet until they’re secured.” A key tool of his trade, the sharp, curved hoof knife, has like- (Turn to Page A3O)
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers