Contents
Ungulates are phalanx-walking animals. This means that the entire weight of their body falls only on a very small fulcrum – the terminal phalanx on the fingers. The keratinized part of the skin: nails in humans, claws in many mammals and birds, in ungulates in the process of evolution turned into a hoof. The outer part of this organ bears at least half of the total load on the entire hoof. Because of this, diseases of the hooves of cattle and horses are very common. Sheep, goats and pigs also suffer from hoof disease, but to a lesser extent, as they are lighter in weight.
Varieties of hoof diseases in cows
The hoof is a horn capsule that protects the tissues inside, firmly connected to the skin. The structure of a cow’s hoof is similar to that of a horse. The only difference is that cows have two fingers. Because of this, the hoof wall of a cow is slightly thinner than that of a horse. The soft part of the sole also has a slightly different shape. But the principle is the same.
The hoof is not a monolith. It has a complex structure. The hard part of the hoof, which is called the hoof shoe, consists of the following layers:
- Hoof wall formed by a tubular horn. This part is “dead” almost along the entire height of the hoof and performs a protective function.
- Leaf horn, located under the tubular layer. This layer closer to the plantar part also dies off and forms a “white line”: a relatively soft substance that resembles rubber. The leaf layer is “alive” almost along the entire height of the hoof, except for the plantar part.
- The sole protects the hoof from below.
The dead and tough layers of the hoof separate the living layers of skin that surround the coffin bone from the sides and bottom.
Inside the hoof shoe are the bones of the two phalanges of the finger. Cows walk on the terminal phalanx, which is called the hoof-shaped bone. The hoof shoe repeats the shape of this bone.
The hoof shoe is connected to the skin of the limb through a special layer: the skin of the corolla. The corolla is only about 1 cm wide. But this area plays an important role in the formation of the hoof. Damage or disease of the corolla is also reflected in the hooves of cattle.
In cows, the most common fungal diseases are:
- Mortellaro disease;
- pododermatitis;
- footrot.
Favorable conditions for the development of various types of fungi are created by dirty bedding and insufficient exercise.
This “injustice” is explained by the fact that it is often more profitable to sell a cow for meat than to spend money on treating an illness. For especially valuable breeding cows, the same methods are used as for horses.
strawberry disease
Common name for digital dermatitis. This disease has synonyms associated with the author of the discovery and the place of the first discovery:
- hairy heel warts;
- strawberry foot rot;
- Mortellaro disease;
- Italian rot;
- papillomatous digital dermatitis.
All names of the disease reflect either the history of discovery or the appearance that the skin formation takes.
Digital dermatitis was first discovered in Italy (Italian rot) in 1974. The disease is caused by mixed species of bacteria, instead of one specific pathogen. Outwardly, the affected area looks like a pink tumor with tubercles. A piece of hair sticks out from each tubercle. Hence the main popular names for dermatitis: strawberry and hair.
The real heel, similar to the human one, in animals is located next to the hock joint and is called the calcaneal tubercle.
Digital dermatitis is different from foot rot, although both conditions can occur at the same time. The development of Mortellaro disease begins with a lesion of the heel of the hoof. The disease affects dairy cattle. Due to pain and discomfort, the cow reduces milk yield, but the quality of the milk does not suffer.
Causes and symptoms
There is no pronounced seasonality in this type of disease, since bacteria multiply in the dirty bedding of the barn. Causes of Mortellaro disease – non-compliance with the rules for caring for cows:
- dirty wet bedding;
- lack of hoof care;
- unbalanced diet that reduces immunity;
- soft hooves;
- introduction into the herd of sick animals.
This type of dermatitis is caused by anaerobic bacteria, for which the dirt in the bedding is an ideal breeding ground. The basis of the “set” of bacteria are spirochetes of the genus Treponema.
At the initial stage of the disease, the formation looks like an oval, red, raw ulcer on the heel. Then the ulcer develops into a convex bump, the surface of which rather resembles not the well-known strawberry, but lychee with hairs sticking out of the tubercles. But few have seen the lychee.
Without treatment, dermatitis grows and captures nearby areas. Education can pass into the gap between the hooves and further up. With advanced dermatitis, lameness is observed in a cow.
Attempts to identify the existing set of bacteria are made very rarely, and the diagnosis is made on the basis of history and clinical signs. A classification of the stages of digital dermatitis has been developed. The letter “M” in the designation of the stage means “Mortellaro”:
- M0 – healthy skin;
- M1 – early stage, lesion diameter <2 cm;
- M2 – active acute ulcer;
- M3 – healing, the affected area is covered with a scab;
- M4 – chronic stage, most often expressed in the form of a thickened epithelium.
With digital dermatitis, a complex treatment is carried out, aimed at the maximum destruction of all possible types of pathogenic bacteria.
Photo of the hoof of a cow with Mortellaro’s disease and the cycles of its development.
Therapies
Treatment of the disease is carried out with the help of antibiotics, which are applied to the affected areas. The skin must first be cleaned and dried. The best treatment for Mortellaro’s disease is Oxytetracycline, which is applied to the ulcer. Dressings do not affect the course of treatment, but protect the wound from contamination. This procedure is done on request.
If many animals are sick in the herd, baths with a disinfectant solution are made. The composition of the solution includes formalin and copper sulfate. The second option is thymol solution.
The length of the bath is not less than 1,8 m, and the depth is not less than 15 cm. It is made in such a way that each cow’s leg is dipped into the solution twice to the level of the fetlock joint. In the barn avoid the formation of slurry, which promotes the development of pathogenic bacteria.
Footrot
Also multibacterial hoof disease, but the predominant rot causing organisms are Fusobacterium necrophorum and Bacteroides melaninogenicus. Footrot affects cattle of any age, but is most common in adult cows.
The disease does not have a pronounced seasonality, but in rainy summers and autumns, cases of the disease become more frequent.
Causes and symptoms
If the skin is healthy, bacteria cannot cause disease. To penetrate the body, pathogens need some kind of damage to the skin. The provoking factors are:
- Dirt and wet bedding soften the skin. Because of this, the epidermis is easily damaged, and infection can penetrate through the wound.
- Frozen into sharp spikes or dried to a solid state, mud can also injure a cow’s leg.
- Stones often injure the skin around the hoof.
Since it is difficult to injure all 4 legs at the same time, usually the symptoms of the disease appear first on any one limb.
Signs of the initial stage of the disease:
- lameness;
- wound injury on a sore leg;
- pus may be present;
- unpleasant odor;
- fever with a temperature of 39,5-40 ° C;
- leg swelling;
- sharp pain.
Usually foot rot is an intractable disease of cattle hooves, and treatment can be delayed for several months. Especially under poor conditions. But there have also been cases of spontaneous recovery.
Therapies
In the case of foot rot, you should not hope for “it will pass by itself”. Usually this disease is well treated with systemic antibiotics in combination with preventive measures: dry, clean bedding and long walking in the pasture.
Of the antibiotics used to treat the disease:
- tetracyclines;
- penicillin;
- sodium sulfadimidine;
- sulfabromethazine;
- other antibacterial agents.
After treatment with medications, cows are kept on a clean, dry floor until the signs of rot disappear.
Recent studies abroad have shown the high efficacy of zinc supplementation in disease prevention. Also, as a preventive measure, chlortetracycline is added to livestock feed at the rate of 2 mg per 1 kg of live weight.
pododermatitis
Pododermatitis is a group of diseases:
- aseptic (non-purulent or non-infectious);
- infectious (purulent);
- chronic verrucous.
The causes and symptoms of these cow hoof diseases, as well as their treatment, differ from each other.
Aseptic pododermatitis
This is a non-purulent inflammation of the base of the skin of the hoof. The disease has 2 types of course: acute and chronic. Pododermatitis can be localized in a limited area or capture a significant part of the hoof. The most common place of occurrence of the disease is the area of the heel angles.
Causes and symptoms
There are quite a few reasons for the occurrence of non-purulent pododermatitis, but usually they are all associated with excessive pressure on the sole:
- bruises (in a simple way they are often called naminki);
- improper hoof trimming, due to which the cow begins to lean not on the hoof wall, but only on the sole;
- thinning of the sole due to improper trimming;
- content and movement on a hard surface.
The symptom of this type of disease is lameness, the degree of which depends on the severity of the damage to the hoof. In acute aseptic pododermatitis, lameness increases when moving on hard ground. The temperature of the hoofed shoe is higher than that of a healthy limb. This difference is determined by simple palpation by hand. Increased pulsation of the digital arteries. The localization of inflammation is found out with the help of trial forceps.
The chronic form of the disease is determined by the appearance of the hoof.
Therapies
The cow is transferred to a soft bed. On the first day, cold compresses are applied to the hoof. From the 2nd day until the end of the inflammation process, thermal procedures are used: hot baths or mud, UHF.
Also recommend the introduction of corticosteroids into the digital arteries. But this procedure should be carried out by a specialist.
If the inflammation does not go away or the symptoms worsen the disease, the abscess is opened. The open cavity is protected with a sterile dressing until scarring occurs.
Chronic aseptic pododermatitis in cows is not treated, as it is not economically viable.
infectious pododermatitis
The disease occurs in all species of ungulates. The current is superficial or deep; diffuse or focal.
Causes and symptoms
The cause of the disease is usually the infection of wounds, deep cracks and bumps. In cows, infectious pododermatitis often occurs as a result of prolonged exposure to hard cement floors. In this case, the onset of the disease contributes to the erasure and softening of the sole of the hoof.
The main symptom of purulent pododermatitis in a cow is the protection of the leg. The cow at rest rests only on the toe of the affected leg. When moving, lameness is clearly visible. The general temperature in cows rises slightly, but the hoof is hot to the touch. When examined with trial tongs, the cow pulls out her leg and does not want to stand still.
With deep purulent pododermatitis, the signs of the disease are the same as with superficial, but more pronounced. If the focus has not yet been opened, the general depressed state of the cow is also observed.
Therapies
In the treatment of the disease, an abscess is first opened, since it is necessary to ensure that the pus has a free exit. The focus of inflammation is detected using trial forceps and then the sole is cut out until the abscess is opened.
After the operation, the wound is washed with an antiseptic from a syringe, dried with cotton swabs and then treated with antibacterial powder preparations. A sterile bandage is applied over the top. If the focus was opened from the plantar side, the bandage is impregnated with tar and a canvas stocking is put on.
Chronic verrucous pododermatitis
The old name for the disease is “arrow cancer”. Previously it was believed that this disease of the hooves is characteristic only for horses. Later, verrucous pododermatitis was found in cows, sheep and pigs. The disease usually affects 1-2 fingers, rarely when all the hooves on the limb are damaged.
Cancer of the arrow begins from the crumb, less often from the sole of the hoof. This type of dermatitis received the name “arrow cancer” due to the fact that the tissues damaged by the disease look like neoplasms.
Causes and symptoms
The causative agent of the disease has not been identified. Provoking factors include:
- content in the mud;
- prolonged softening of the hoofed horn due to damp soil;
- excessive cutting of the finger crumb.
With a benign form of the disease, hyperplasia of the papillary layer is present. In the malignant form, histological examinations show carcinoma.
Hyperplasia and decay of the stratum corneum are detected from the moment the clinical signs of the disease appear. The papillae of the base of the stratum corneum, increasing, take a flask-like shape.
In the lesion, the stratum corneum becomes soft, begins to separate easily and turns into a liquid brown mass with an unpleasant odor. Gradually, the process extends to the entire crumb and sole of the hoof. The process does not affect the stratum corneum of the hoofed shoe, but in this area of the hoof, as well as in the region of the corolla and lateral cartilages, secondary purulent abscesses occur.
Lameness is most often absent and appears only when moving on soft ground or severe damage to the hoof.
Therapies
Effective means for the treatment of this disease have not been found. The affected areas are cut out and then cauterized with antiseptic agents. A positive result is obtained if the disease was in the initial stage. In severe cases, it is more profitable to hand over a cow for meat.
Laminitis
This disease also belongs to the group of pododermatitis. Since the mechanism of the onset and course of the disease differs from other types of diseases in this group, laminitis is usually not perceived as pododermatitis. The vernacular name for this disease is “oops”. But modern research has proven that water is not a factor that causes this disease. Moreover, the name “opoy” comes from the fact that the disease allegedly arose due to the drinking of a large amount of water by a hot horse. But cows, sheep and goats also suffer from laminitis. And no one drives these animals to exhaustion.
There are other names for laminitis:
- rheumatic inflammation of the hooves;
- acute diffuse aseptic pododermatitis.
Horses are indeed the most susceptible to the disease. In all species of ungulates, the disease most often affects the forelimbs due to the fact that the main weight of the animal falls on the shoulder girdle. Less commonly, all four legs are affected.
Causes and symptoms
Unlike other pododermatitis, rheumatic hoof inflammation is toxic-chemical in nature. The causes of the disease are:
- protein-rich feed with lack of movement;
- low-quality moldy feed contaminated with fungal toxins;
- excess weight;
- content on a hard floor;
- tympanum;
- infectious diseases;
- postpartum complications;
- abortion;
- dead fetus decomposing in the uterus;
- drug allergy.
The first signs of the disease are easy to miss, since only in the first hours they observe rapid breathing, an increase in the overall body temperature, and cardiac disorders. At the same time, muscle tremors and hyperemia of the mucous membranes appear. These signs can be confused with many other diseases.
After the body temperature returns to normal, breathing and heart function are restored. Externally. Since the cow has an unnatural stance with the support of the hooves on the heel. When listening, a rapid heartbeat will be noticeable: a sign of pain experienced.
Rheumatic inflammation of the hooves can occur in two forms: acute and chronic. In acute inflammation, the soreness of the hooves increases during the first 2 days. Later, the pain subsides, and a full recovery can occur after a week. But in fact, if left untreated, acute hoof inflammation often becomes chronic.
In the chronic form of the disease, the coffin bone is displaced and, in severe cases, comes out through the sole (perforation of the sole). The hoof becomes “hedgehog”. Well-defined “waves” of the hoof horn appear on the front of the hoof. This is due to the fact that the toe part of the hoof during rheumatic inflammation grows much faster than the heel.
With a particularly severe course of the disease, the hoofed shoe can come off the limb. For any ungulate animal, this is a death sentence. If they try to treat horses as pets, then saving a cow does not make any sense. It’s better to buy a new one. Most often, the shoe comes off only from one hoof. Since a cow is an artiodactyl animal, she has a chance to stay alive if the shoe comes off only one hoof on her foot. But, in fact, the cow will remain maimed.
The horse was even saved, spending a lot of time and money. But he was no longer fit for work.
Therapies
When the hoof is deformed, treatment is no longer possible. A favorable prognosis for the outcome of the disease is only if measures are taken within the first 12-36 hours.
First of all, the cause of the disease is removed. The cow is transferred to a box with soft bedding. Cooling wet compresses are applied to the hooves. A good option is to put the cow in a stream so that the running water cools the hooves. Analgesics are used to relieve pain. An emergency reduction in the weight of the cow, although not very significant, can be achieved by giving diuretics. Weight reduction is necessary to reduce pressure on the hooves. After eliminating the signs of acute inflammation, the cow is forced to move in order to improve blood circulation in the hooves.
Corolla phlegmon
Purulent inflammation of the fiber under the base of the skin of the corolla and hoof border. Phlegmon is of two types: traumatic and infectious. The first occurs when the skin of the corolla is injured or severely softened. The second is a complication of other hoof diseases.
Causes and symptoms
The cause of the disease is most often repeated bruises and wounds of the corolla. When kept on a dirty bedding for a long time, the skin of the corolla softens, and microorganisms that cause disease can also penetrate through it. Moments that contribute to the appearance of purulent inflammation of the hoof: low immunity in a cow due to exhaustion, overwork, or illness with another disease. Phlegmon can also be a consequence of purulent-necrotic processes in the cow’s hoof.
The first sign of the onset of the disease is swelling of the hoof corolla with an increase in local temperature. The swelling is painful and tense. A little later, other symptoms of the disease appear:
- increase in general body temperature;
- decreased appetite;
- oppression;
- reduction in milk yield;
- severe lameness;
- reluctance to move, the cow prefers to lie down.
In a blood test, you can see too many white blood cells in the cow’s blood.
With further development, the tumor increases and hangs over the hoof wall. Puffiness extends to the entire finger. At the highest point of the tumor, softening appears, and the skin is torn, releasing accumulated pus. After opening the abscess, the general condition of the cow immediately improves.
In the second form of phlegmon (purulent-putrefactive), a whitish strip first appears on the lower edge of the swelling. On the 3-4th day, brownish drops of exudate appear on the surface of the swelling. On the 4-5th day, the skin becomes necrotic, the exudate becomes bloody, ulcers appear in place of the torn off skin pieces.
In cows who have recovered from phlegmon, changes occur in the papillary layer of the corolla. As a result, even after recovery, visible defects remain on the horny wall of the hoof.
Therapies
The method of treatment is chosen depending on the degree of development of phlegmon and the complexity of the ongoing purulent-necrotic processes. At the initial stage of the disease, they try to stop the development of an abscess in the hoof. For this, alcohol-ichthyol dressings are used. Also, antibiotics with novocaine are injected into the arteries of the cow’s finger.
If the development of phlegmon has not stopped, the abscess is opened. The opening of the abscess and further treatment of the wound should be carried out by a specialist, since the inflammation can already spread to neighboring tissues. The wound in the hoof is washed with hydrogen peroxide, dried and sprinkled liberally with tricillin or oxytetracycline powder mixed with sulfadimezin. A sterile dressing is applied on top, which is changed every 3-6 days. In parallel with the treatment of the wound, the cow is given general strengthening agents.
sole ulcer
Cows do not have such a disease as hoof erosion, but a specific sole ulcer most closely matches this name. It is observed in cows in large industrial complexes. Usually large cows of high-milk breeds get sick with prolonged stall keeping and abundant feeding. Almost no disease occurs in bulls. Young cattle are also less susceptible to this disease.
Causes and symptoms
Most often, the disease begins with the hind hooves of the cow. The provoking factors are:
- slatted floors;
- short cramped stalls;
- untimely trimming of hooves.
With a rare trimming of the hoof, the cow takes an elongated shape. Because of this, the balance of the cow’s body is shifted, and the coffin bone takes on an unnatural position.
Symptoms may vary depending on the severity of the disease:
- careful movements;
- lameness when resting on the leg, especially pronounced when moving on an uneven surface;
- the cow prefers to lie down;
- decreased appetite;
- observe gradual depletion;
- milk yields are reduced.
In the initial stage of the disease, gray-yellow, red-yellow or dark red spots form on the sole of the hoof. In this place, the horn loses its elasticity and strength. As a result of gradual chipping of the sole, a purulent-necrotic ulcer is formed at the site of the focus.
There are dead tissues in the middle of the ulcer, granulation growths along the edges. In case of necrosis and rupture of the deep digital flexor, a fistula is formed in the ulcer, more than 1 cm deep. The cow lifts her leg on the toe at the moment of support on the floor. The lesion of the shuttle mucosa or claw joint is indicated by the outflow of a viscous fluid from the fistula.
Therapies
Treatment of the hoof is carried out by surgery. The prognosis is favorable only at the initial stage of the disease. During the operation, the entire altered hoof horn and dead tissue are removed. Sometimes the affected finger may need to be amputated.
Tyloma
Another name is “limax” (limax). skin education. This is a dense roller in the region of the arch of the interhoof gap.
Causes and symptoms
The origins are unknown. Presumably, not only external factors, but also heredity play a role in the appearance of tiloma. This theory is supported by the fact that tiloma most often occurs in cows under 6 years of age. In cows older than this age, the disease is less common, and after 9 years it does not occur at all.
Signs of tiloma:
- the appearance of a dense, painless, sclerotized skin roller;
- the formation has a length from the anterior to the posterior end of the interhoof gap;
- roller enlargement.
At the moment of support on the ground, the hooves move apart and the roller is injured. Exudate accumulates between the tiloma and the skin, irritating the skin. With repeated injuries, an infection enters the wound, leading to purulent diseases of the hoof. Sometimes the roller can become keratinized. In a cow with tiloma, careful leaning of the diseased leg on the floor is first observed. Lameness develops later.
Therapies
The tiloma is usually removed by surgery, cutting out the formation. Cauterization of the roller with antiseptic preparations very rarely leads to a positive result.
Lameness
Lameness is not a disease, but a symptom of a problem. There can be many reasons for it. And often it is not a disease of the hoof that causes lameness, but a problem in the joints above. The causes of lameness can also be improper development of the hoof:
- thin sole;
- a hoof compressed under the aureole;
- crooked hoof;
- fragile and brittle horn;
- soft horn;
- cracks;
- horn column.
Some of these causes of lameness may be congenital, but often they are due to improper and untimely hoof trimming.
Pruning is carried out every 4 months, trying to maintain hoof balance. Often trimming is adventurous, as cows are usually not taught to give their legs and stand quietly during the procedure. Most often, a cow’s hoof is not paid attention at all until the animal limps. As a result, it is necessary to treat hoof diseases in a cow with the help of a felling.
Preventive measures
Measures to prevent hoof diseases are simple:
- regular hoof trimming;
- keeping cows on clean bedding;
- quality walking;
- non-poisonous food;
- a large amount of movement.
Prevention will not work if the disease is hereditary. But such cows are culled from the herd and not allowed to breed.
Conclusion
Cattle hoof diseases affect not only the movements of cows, but also their productivity. At the same time, hoof treatment is a long and not always successful occupation. It is easier to prevent a disease than to correct an oversight later.