Livestock Management RANCHING
Cattle hooves are about 7 to 8 square inches and need to support a 1,200- to 1,300-pound cow, or a 2,000-pound bull. That’s a lot of pounds per square inch on the hooves, so watch the cattle closely to catch any lameness early, before it becomes a larger and more expensive problem.
Lame Excuse
Regardless of why your cattle may be showing signs of lameness, fi nd and fi x the problem fast! By Gary DiGiuseppe
D
R. GUY ELLIS, A BEEF TECHNICAL SERVICES VETERINARIAN for Merck Animal Health, says cattle genetics have not kept up with modern feedlot produc-
tion practices and this may have caused increased problems with the legs and feet of cattle. “I read that of the health issues in a feedyard, 10
to 20 percent are related to lameness in some form or fashion. Of that group, a big percentage [of the prob- lems] are in the feet,” says Ellis. The incidence of lameness is higher in confi ned
circumstances like feedlots or dairy barns than it is for cow-calf operations, but environmental conditions are defi nitely a factor and management of them is important. “If you have really soggy conditions, it’s important
to provide drainage and to be able to clean up the envi- ronment to minimize chronic, wet conditions,” he says. But lameness can also be caused by dietary imbal-
ances. Ellis says, “We want to get these cattle fat enough for slaughter as quickly as we can.” Since the 1980s, live weights of cattle coming out of the feedlot have
60 The Cattleman August 2014
increased approximately 200 pounds. “We’re putting a lot on these skeletal frames and we need to really be careful of getting the ration ‘too hot’ to where we cause metabolic acidosis and issues down in the feet. When you confi ne cattle and feed a high-carbohydrate diet, you are at risk for nutritional foot problems.” One of those problems is toe ulcers, produced when
there is bleeding and infection where the hoof wall meets the sole. Another is laminitis, a condition in which the connection between the hoof wall and bone weakens and the structures begin to separate. The pain felt by the animal leads to acute lameness. The emphasis on fi nished weight also works against
the animal’s ability to carry that weight. Ellis points out that adult breeding bulls and cows weigh about as much today as their counterparts did 20 or 30 years ago, “but in the feedyard we’re making those cattle weigh more than they did 20 to 30 years ago. Genetically, we haven’t really selected well for the skeletal frame to be able to support these heavier weights.”
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