A5 Q2 Torch Summer Magazine 2024 - Flipbook - Page 28
LAMENESS IN BEEF CATTLE
By Hannah Fitzsimmonds BVSc MRCVS
Ca琀琀le lameness is a signi昀椀cant welfare and economic problem facing the livestock
industry. Most of the focus has been on lameness within the dairy industry, but in
this ar琀椀cle it is lameness in the beef industry that we will be looking at.
There is a lameness prevalence of around 30% in the na琀椀onal dairy herd, and there are numerous research papers that support this 昀椀gure. However, when speci昀椀cally looking at beef
ca琀琀le, research is far more scarce. Figures published for UK beef ca琀琀le show the prevalence
of lameness in the beef herd reported as 8.3% (range 2.0 to 21.2%) in 昀椀nishers and 14.2%
(range 0.0 to 43.2%) in suckler cows. What is interes琀椀ng about these 昀椀gures is the range,
with some 昀椀nisher and suckler cow herds having really low lameness prevalence, which is
great! This shows that there are farms that we as vets and farmers can learn from to support
the reduc琀椀on of lameness on some farms with higher lameness levels.
Lameness is a welfare problem, as it is a painful condi琀椀on. It also a昀昀ects the e昀케ciency of
meat produc琀椀on, with beef 昀椀nishing ca琀琀le in the UK showing a 240g reduc琀椀on in average
daily liveweight gain (ADLG) if they are lame once in the 昀椀nishing period, increasing if they
are lame for a longer propor琀椀on of the 昀椀nishing period. So, if an individual 昀椀nishing animal is
lame for 45 days through a 90 day 昀椀nishing period, with a 240g reduc琀椀on in ADLG, it would
be 10.8KG lighter at 昀椀nishing, and based on 474.2p per kg, the farmer would be expected to
lose £51.21 on that animal. Scaled up, there could be a £9,054,998 per year loss to the beef
industry if 8.3% of 昀椀nishers are lame for 45 days in their 昀椀nishing period. These costs are
just looking at the 昀椀nishing period; we don’t yet know the true cost of lameness in suckler
herds and how lameness a昀昀ects concep琀椀on rates, calving intervals or calf growth rates.
From the work done in the dairy industry, there is a strong link between poor mobility and
poor fer琀椀lity.
What’s causing the lameness? For sucklers and 昀椀nishers, having a white line disease
lesion or overgrown claws are two major causes of lameness. Digital derma琀椀琀椀s can anecdotally be an important cause of lameness to get on top of in some beef herds. Knowing which
lesion type your ca琀琀le most commonly develop is vital informa琀椀on to know, as this helps us
make changes most likely to prevent those lesion types developing in the future. In terms
of risk factors for lameness, 昀椀nishing ca琀琀le on sla琀琀ed 昀氀ooring could increase the risk of
becoming lame, and lameness risk increases with age. The breed of beef animal slightly alters
the risk, with Charolais reported to have a higher predisposi琀椀on to lameness.
If you spot a lame individual, iden琀椀fying the cause of lameness and providing e昀昀ec琀椀ve treatment in a prompt manner, ideally in the 昀椀rst few days, will not only be most bene昀椀cial for the
animal, but also increase the chance of improving the lameness and reduce the likelihood
of recurrence. Many of the lameness causing lesions do not require injectable an琀椀bio琀椀cs;
with remedial trimming, applica琀椀ons of blocks, pain relief and topical an琀椀bio琀椀cs in various
combina琀椀ons providing e昀昀ec琀椀ve treatment for most lesion types.
Having the means to safely li昀琀 all four feet is important, as we see more front feet lameness
in beef ca琀琀le than their dairy counterparts. If your crush isn’t up to the task, or the handling
facili琀椀es make it a pain to get ca琀琀le to the crush, especially if they’re out at grass, li昀琀ing a
foot becomes a much more challenging job. However these di昀케cul琀椀es shouldn’t become
excuses as to why lame animals aren’t being appropriately managed.
