Treatments of infectious Treatments of infectious bovine hoof diseasesbovine hoof diseases

Dr. Matt BreedDr. Matt BreedDr. Chuck GuardDr. Chuck Guard

Department of Population Medicine and Diagnostic Department of Population Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell

UniversityUniversity

Infectious Foot DiseasesInfectious Foot Diseases

Foot RotFoot Rot• Fusobacterium Fusobacterium

necrophorum & necrophorum & Bacteriodes Bacteriodes melaninogenicusmelaninogenicus

Interdigital Interdigital DermatitisDermatitis• Dichelobacter Dichelobacter

nodosusnodosus

Infectious Foot DiseasesInfectious Foot Diseases

Digital Dermatitis, Digital Dermatitis, Hairy Heel Warts, Hairy Heel Warts, MortellaroMortellaro• Cause not proven Cause not proven

yet but spirochetes yet but spirochetes strongly strongly incriminatedincriminated

Foot RotFoot Rot

Common in Common in environment and environment and manuremanure

Usually requires Usually requires injury to injury to interdigital skininterdigital skin

Sudden onset, Sudden onset, acute diseaseacute disease

Interdigital dermatitisInterdigital dermatitis

Chronic infection of Chronic infection of interdigital skininterdigital skin

Moist caseous Moist caseous exudate, sour odorexudate, sour odor

Skin responds by Skin responds by hypertrophyhypertrophy

May spread to May spread to heels and heels and undermine heel undermine heel hornhorn

Digital dermatitisDigital dermatitis

Worldwide spread Worldwide spread in last 25 yearsin last 25 years

Highly contagious Highly contagious within herdwithin herd

Poor immune Poor immune response to response to infectioninfection

Hair follicle primary Hair follicle primary site of infection in site of infection in normal skinnormal skin

TREATMENTTREATMENT

What are we trying to What are we trying to treat?treat?• DISEASEDISEASE• LESION LESION • LAMENESSLAMENESS

Does treatment of Does treatment of disease improve disease improve lameness in a herd?lameness in a herd?

TREATMENTTREATMENT

Do we treat the hoof Do we treat the hoof lesion and/or lesion and/or something else?something else?• Environment, Environment,

management, nutrition management, nutrition etcetc

Lesion TreatmentsLesion TreatmentsTreatmentTreatment TypeType FootrotFootrot Interdigital Interdigital

dermatitisdermatitisDigital Digital dermatitisdermatitis

TopicalTopical AntibioticAntibiotic

DisinfectantDisinfectant++ ++++++ ++++++

SystemicSystemic AntibioticAntibiotic ++++++ -- --

Foot bathsFoot baths AntibioticAntibiotic

disinfectantdisinfectant++ ++++++ ++++++

Other areas of importance:Other areas of importance:

Regular correct Regular correct foot trimmingfoot trimming

Clean, dry, Clean, dry, comfortable comfortable animalsanimals

Other areas of importance:Other areas of importance:

Counting lame Counting lame cows:cows:• Same number as Same number as

the farmerthe farmer• Which groupsWhich groups• What What

lesions/diseases lesions/diseases presentpresent

• Specific area on Specific area on farm causing farm causing lamenesslameness

QuestionsQuestions