A streamlined method of visual scoring, which can be performed quickly, consistently and accurately by farm personnel, continues to play a crucial role in managing lameness in dairy herds.

We can all agree that a lame cow takes advantage of valuable time and money. When a cow becomes lame, additional internal inflammation occurs – diverting energy away from reproductive success and milk output.

Recent research conducted by University of British Columbia’s Dairy Education and Research Centre has produced a method of low-cost lameness detection that can be conducted faster than conventional locomotion scoring.

The latest data shows between 2% and 54% of dairy cows worldwide can be lame in a given year.

Digital dermatitis, an infectious hoof disease, and non-infectious hoof challenges, like white-line disease, thin soles and sole ulcers, are common occurrences across dairies that often go undetected until it is too late.

Lameness is one of the costliest disorders of dairy cattle, even in a grazing dairy herd. Yet, many grazing dairy cattle are not part of a routine hoof trimming schedule.