Randomised controlled trial to evaluate the effect of foot trimming before and after first calving on subsequent lameness episodes and productivity in dairy heifers

S.A Mahendran,J.N Huxley,Y.-M Chang,M Burnell,D.C Barrett,H.R Whay,T Blackmore,C.S Mason,N.J Bell

doi:10.1016/j.tvjl.2017.01.011

Abstract

The objective of this study was to assess both independent and combined effects of routine foot trimming of heifers at 3 weeks pre-calving and 100 days post calving on the first lactation lameness and lactation productivity. A total of 419 pre-calving dairy heifers were recruited from one heifer rearing operation over a 10-month period. Heifers were randomly allocated into one of four foot trimming regimens; pre-calving foot trim and post-calving lameness score (Group TL), pre-calving lameness score and post-calving foot trim (Group LT), pre-calving foot trim and post-calving foot trim (Group TT), and pre-calving lameness score and post-calving lameness score (Group LL, control group). All heifers were scored for lameness at 24 biweekly time points for 1 year following calving, and first lactation milk production data were collected.Following calving, 172/419 (41.1%) of heifers became lame during the study (period prevalence), with lameness prevalence at each time-point following calving ranging from 48/392 (12.2%) at 29–42 days post-calving to 4/379 (1.1%) between 295 and 383 days after calving. The effects of the four treatment groups were not significantly different from each other for overall lameness period prevalence, biweekly lameness point prevalence, time to first lameness event, type of foot lesion identified at dry off claw trimming, or the 4% fat corrected 305-day milk yield. However, increased odds lameness was significantly associated with a pre-calving trim alone (P = 0.044) compared to the reference group LL. The odds of heifer lameness were highest between 0 and 6 weeks post-partum, and heifer farm destination was significantly associated with lameness (OR 2.24), suggesting that even at high standard facilities, environment and management systems have more effect on heifer foot health than trimming.

Highlights

Lameness and deterioration in claw health observed during the first lactation (Offer, et al, 2000, Capion et al, 2009) is likely to contribute to poor longevity, high recurrence of foot lesions between lactations (Capion et al, 2008), reduced milk yield, poor fertility (Hernandez, et al, 2005) and increased likelihood of culling (Sogstad, et al, 2007)
(Table 1); 188 heifers were milked in Farm 1 and 231 were heifers milked in Farm 2
Nineteen heifers were excluded due to lameness at 3 weeks pre-calving

Summary

Introduction

Lameness and deterioration in claw health observed during the first lactation (Offer, et al, 2000, Capion et al, 2009) is likely to contribute to poor longevity, high recurrence of foot lesions between lactations (Capion et al, 2008), reduced milk yield, poor fertility (Hernandez, et al, 2005) and increased likelihood of culling (Sogstad, et al, 2007). Claw horn lesion development in dairy heifers can occur pre-calving (Livesey, et al, 1998), with concurrent high levels of claw horn pathology present in early lactation (Webster., 2001) and lameness at 50-100 days post-partum is common (Ettema et al, 2006, Maxwell, et al, 2015). Since lameness occurs frequently in heifers, pre-calving foot inspection might reduce subsequent lameness around in the periparturient period. The main cause of bovine lameness is foot lesions (Murray et al, 1996), and one proposed method of managing foot health is routine foot trimming, aiming to maintain correct weight bearing for optimal function, and to minimise and prevent lesion development (Manske, et al, 2001). Locomotion scoring is the main method used to detect lameness, and previous work has demonstrated the low prevalence of proximal limb lameness (Murray et al,. 1996)

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