Page 12 - ACV Journal DECEMBER 2015
P. 12
Scientific
“The 2 tools that have made life a lot easier in recent times are: corded grinder and P16 sanding disc just from the hardware
1. the hoof cutting angle grinder blade & store. Systemic antibiotics only for cows with swelling - joint
2. support straps with “truckie” ratchet - they prevent the patient infections, footrot or axial wall cracks that are swollen at the top.
going down & help immobilise them (same principle as casting Alamycin spray for digital dermatitis. I am using NSAIDs more
rope). Any cow that shows signs of anxiety or stress when now they are cheaper, mostly in severely swollen or severely
pushed up into the crush gets Xylazine i/v before ropes on. lame cows provided their prognosis is good. My main tips are
Restraint: Starts with support strap under chest & ratchet up that I wouldn’t be without my grinder, my pulley and I make sure
tight, then “old school” with 2 ropes - 1 long one above the my knives are always sharp (I touch them up 2-3 times a week
hock, over cross bar above vet gate, back under hock and lift or daily if we are busy with lame cows). My biggest effort was
then tie off with quick release 1/2 hitch - the other a heavy duty 56 lame cows in three days and I definitely couldn’t have done
leg rope to immobilise foot(ie.above fetlock & several times it without these three things.”
around a solid post &/or rail, then have somebody put tension
on it - if a cow senses a bit of “give” they will keep kicking!) “2 years ago I got frustrated with how slow it was to treat lame
Clean up foot with hoof knife & inspect the interdigital space cows with straps and pulleys. It wasn’t just how slow it was, I was
- often find a stone or some other fb in there! Hoof testers are also frustrated with not feeling like I was able to do the job justice.
the single most important tool! Identify “sore” claw & sore In a rush of blood, I bought a tipping crush from Peter Best. It cost
spot then if neither respond, go looking higher up. Start by me about $40,000 at the time, and it has already paid me back. It
using double action hoof cutters to shape the claws roughly. has surprised me how well appreciated it has been by my clients,
A “cheese grater” blade for the angle grinder is a fantastic especially by the beef producers with their bulls. Clients love it.
tool at this stage. Clean up the sole & shape the claws Doing lame cattle is now one of my main areas of income, and
more precisely. This defines the white line much better than this in a small 1 vet mixed practice. It has taken me a while to get
the hoof knife, cutters or rasp do. Establish good drainage really proficient with my trimming and balancing of the feet, but the
with hoof knife &/or hoof cutter. Dig out abaxial cracks with advantage of the tipper is that it gives excellent access to all 4 feet,
the knife. I like cowslips over blocks - I think they stay on especially the front ones which is important with bulls. I have spent
longer. Pain relief with NSAIDs. Tolfedine & Meloxicam countless hours consulting the “Oracle of YouTube” watching how
are great (longer acting), Ketoprofen has nil withholding the Dutch foot trimmers operate, and I think the Dutch approach is
period. Antibiotics: only if signs of interdigital dermatitis or the best.
septic arthritis. I think if an abcess is well debrided & drained
antibiotics are probably not necessary - a lot of them have had Main things I have found that help are:
antibiotics before we see them! Penicillin is OK for footrot,
tho’ Ceftiofur has nil withholding. Septic arthrits of coffin joint 1. Having really sharp knives. I use a rubber sharpening wheel on
- difficult to get drainage, I prefer to amputate the claw early. a grinder, and touch the knives up regularly;
These cows are very sore & do well without the claw”
2. Have a bucket of sawdust handy to wipe the mud and muck
“I use a pulley and vet rope secured to the side of the crush off the feet before operating. Better than water when you have
(hinged side of the vet gate so the tabs don’t cut into the cow). power tools around;
We use wooden Camden Cow Clogs and Bovibond Glue and
that seems to be consistently the best after many variations 3. Have a good trimming disc, and spend plenty of time getting
and trials of different products. The wooden blocks wear down used to it first on bits of softwood. I block any foot that has
on their own or fall off after a time so they don’t need to be significant bruising or signs of inflammation. I generally expect
pulled off. Sometimes Cowslips stay on too long and need to be to use 2 blocks per lame dairy cow. It really helps to spend
removed, or the cows toe grows out and she ends up walking plenty of time drying the hoof and the block with a heat gun,
unnaturally on her heel. The foot surface is prepped with a 4” and trying to use the bovi-bond glue outside in the rain is
pointless. I actually prefer the rubber blocks to the wooden
ones. I find the wooden ones wear excessively and can be
worn off within 4-5 days. I work on doing 4-5 lame cows per
hours as a rule of thumb depending on the setup. I threw in
a few photos if you want them. I ended up having to amputate
the claw on the bull as he developed a septic arthritis from the
crack in his toe. Just emphasises the cost of leaving things go
that little bit too long.”
12 The Australian Cattle Veterinarian | volume 77 | December 2015 www.ava.com.au/cattle
