Key Points for Hoof and Leg Health Care in Dairy Cows, Farmers Must Pay Attention

Nutrition Management

Nutrition management plays an important role in reducing hoof and leg diseases in dairy cows. For example, rumen acidosis is one of the main causes of laminitis. It should be noted that the content of non-structural carbohydrates is recommended not to exceed 45%, and the fiber content in the diet must be sufficient. Based on experience, forage generally should account for more than 1/3 of the dry matter intake of lactating cows. If a TMR diet is used, attention must be paid to uniform mixing, and the TMR sieve check should show appropriate proportions at each layer with a stable diet. In addition, trace elements and vitamins are also very important for hoof health. Zinc is essential for keratin growth, with a recommended dosage of 40 mg/kg. It binds with vitamin A in the liver, and the latter plays an important role in maintaining epithelial tissue and cell replication. Copper deficiency or excessive molybdenum intake can cause an increase in lame cows, with visible signs such as enlarged joints in dairy cows. The recommended copper dosage is greater than 10 mg/kg.

Under conditions of high temperature and high humidity in summer, the feed is prone to fermentation and heating, so the feed should be prepared before feeding and must not be prepared several hours in advance, to prevent spoiled feed from inducing hoof and leg diseases. Also, the feed trough should be cleaned promptly before each feeding to ensure it is clean, and disinfection of the feed trough should be carried out when necessary.

Selection and Breeding

When selecting high-performance breeding bulls, functional indicators such as hoof and leg traits should also be considered, to help the herd improve hooves and legs at the genetic level and reduce the occurrence of hoof and leg diseases. Environmental Management

Hygiene. As summer arrives and humidity increases, it is especially necessary to clean up manure promptly. The quality of the environment for dairy cow hooves and legs is evaluated through the proportion of hoof and leg hygiene assessment scores. When manure exceeds the coronary band, it will affect hoof health in dairy cows. When more than 10% of scores are above 3, environmental rectification measures must be taken to improve hoof and leg hygiene.

Anti-slip. When wet, concrete floors also tend to become slippery. When dairy cows frequently slip or there are many cases of outer hoof injuries, the floor should be ground and made anti-slip in a timely manner to reduce the risk of falls and physical damage to the sole of the hoof.

Dryness. While cleaning the road surface and cattle barn, ventilation should be maximized as much as possible, and regular disinfection should be carried out to keep the cow beds, cattle barn, passages, holding pen and other areas where cows move dry, reducing bacterial growth and reproduction.

Care

Hoof bathing. Effective hoof bathing can effectively prevent interdigital dermatitis and reduce the occurrence of infectious hoof diseases, but hoof bath management is very important. Certain conditions must be met to maximize the effectiveness of hoof bathing.

Preventive care. To ensure normal hoof and leg shape and standing posture in dairy cows, preventive hoof trimming is generally required, and there are two approaches to the timing of trimming. One is to correct hoof shape before a sharp increase in body weight to ensure normal production later, that is, starting hoof shape trimming for newly dried-off cows and cows 120 days after calving; the other is seasonal hoof trimming in spring and autumn each year. During this stage, hoof keratin grows quickly and recovers rapidly after trimming. However, regardless of which trimming model is used, excessive hoof trimming must be avoided to prevent the sole from becoming too thin and damaged.