We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy.
Consumer demands may be fickle and often are not based on a realistic view of livestock production. Yet today’s consumer focus on animal welfare should factor into dairy producer decisions. While market demands have to be taken into consideration, farm management decisions must be based on the science behind animal health and welfare.
Heather Dann of the Miner Institute defines cow comfort as being “a function of the cow’s management,” which has both social and environmental components. Comfortable cows are able to naturally balance their basic needs for rest, rumination and feeding. When these needs are met, cows are healthy and productive.
Cow brushes for grooming and comfort are becoming an increasingly common sight on American dairy farms. Dairymen agree that these types of brushes provide enrichment through grooming and fly control.
Similar to how humans use crutches to limit the use of an injured foot in order to heal, cows rely on a similar approach called blocking to allow abscesses, claw injuries or other conditions to heal. Blocks are applied to a cow’s healthy claw to elevate the injured one off the ground so that it can heal and avoid lameness.
Maier Dairy in Waunakee, Wisconsin, has transformed their hoof health program with a systematic, team-based approach that includes scheduled trimming, lameness prevention and routine monitoring.
When talking about hoof lesions, stop using the “a” word.
On many hoof trimming records, the term “abscess” is a catchall for just about any insult to a dairy cow’s foot, but according to University of Minnesota’s Dr. Gerard Cramer, “That doesn’t tell us anything.”
One of the major changes in my business over the years is the type of records I keep on trim day and how I record this data, but even more important is how and with whom I share these records. When dairy producers put this information to work, they can make great strides to reduce lameness.
When helping a dairyman sort cows to be trimmed, I often point out cows in the herd that have a limp or long toes. All too often, I hear the dairyman saying, “We won’t trim her because she’s a cull cow.”
A well-managed footbath is an effective line of defense against digital dermatitis and foot rot. “You can get yourself out of a bad situation with a footbath,” Roger Olson, dairy specialist with Zinpro Performance Minerals, says.
