Unfortunately, there are no easy or quick solutions when it comes to working on improving hoof health in your dairy cows. By adopting a systematic approach and keeping focus, you can achieve good results with improved hoof health.
If your herd is severely affected by hoof disorders, it may take up to one year before you are in control of hoof health.
In that time it is a matter of keeping your spirits up and continuing to disinfect the hooves systematically, for instance, if you are struggling with digital dermatitis.
It is important to have good routines with a focus on hoof health so that it is not just something you take care of when there is time.
Just as important as mastitis
It can be a good help in the fight against hoof diseases to consider hoof health in the same way as udder health. That means that you would react as soon as you notice the slightest problem and invest time in taking care of hoof problems.
It is recommended that you perform a lameness assessment of the cows.
If you, together with your employees, perform regular assessments, such as a five-point scale for lameness, you will be much better at deciding quickly what should happen to those cows that are lame.
Besides that, you become more aware of lameness, so it is much easier to spot a lame cow when you walk among the cows while performing other tasks in the herd, like cleaning the barn or heat observation.
The earlier you manage to discover and treat a lame cow, the faster and easier she will recover.
It is also important to focus on performing hygiene assessments on a regular basis.
Source: SEGES, Denmark
