HERD HEALTH

During and after wet seasons, bacteria and fungus are prevalent. Similar to human toenails, once fungus and bacteria set in, it’s very challenging to conquer. The combination of different pathogens and a white-line separation are a recipe for lameness in dairy cows.

In days past, before we learned the principles of good hoof care, we would see older, mature dairy cows with overgrown corkscrewed outer claws on their rear feet.

When it comes to hoof health, there are many factors that go into making sure your cows have healthy hooves. Many of these get overlooked, as they may seem trivial, but are all important to keep hooves healthy.

Recently, Health Canada extensively reviewed footbath products containing copper sulphate and zinc sulphate to determine whether they require drug identification number (DIN) registration or if they can be classified as a “veterinary health product” (VHP) in Canada.

Nuisance flies are a vector of disease and an irritant to cattle and workers on a dairy operation. Because of the confined nature of a dairy, it is important to use an integrated pest management (IPM) program for effectively controlling fly populations.

More than 1,500 records comparing lameness and lesion presence data among Alberta freestall herds reveals most cows with lameness have a lesion. However, not all cows with a lesion are lame.