Impact of lameness on cow welfare

The impact of lameness on cow welfare

With an estimated prevalence of 20 to 25% in European dairy herds¹, lameness is the second main issue, after mastitis, affecting dairy cattle both from a welfare and economic perspective². Rather than being one single disease, cattle lameness constitutes any foot or leg condition, whether they are from infectious or non-infectious origin, negatively impacting mobility, posture and gait^{3, 4, 5, 6}.

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The impact of lameness on cow welfare.

Causes, consequences and early treatment approaches

In dairy cows, lameness includes a range of conditions such as white line disease, sole ulcers, sole haemorrhage, interdigital hyperplasia, digital or interdigital dermatitis, heel erosion and interdigital phlegmon (foot rot)^2,7.

In addition to being painful, lameness is often associated with reduced milk yield (estimated loss of 1.5 kg per day compared to non-affected cows⁸), lack of weight gain, poor fertility and increased culling rates^2,9. This means lameness will deeply impact animal welfare as well as farm economics.

Early detection and treatment of lame cows are critical for promoting recovery and preventing further spread².

Treatment of lameness often involves a multimodal approach, including corrective hoof trimming as well as the administration of local anaesthetics, NSAIDs and antibiotics⁹ (only when necessary).

Research suggests that early treatment with orally administered meloxicam can reduce acute pain and lameness scores, while also leading to reduced long-term sensitisation⁹.

Barriers to implementing on-farm pain management in cattle

Implementing pain management protocols on farms can prove challenging. Assessing pain varies from one individual to another, and so does the perception of the need to implement pain management plans.

Although treating lameness would benefit farmers from a financial perspective, as healthy cows have a higher productivity, controlling or preventing lameness in cattle herds remains a challenge for both veterinarians and farmers.

There is limited data on farmers’ ability and willingness to address lameness in cattle⁵, and the persisting high prevalence of lameness shows that prevention, detection and treatment are not enough⁵.

The Federation of Veterinarians in Europe urges veterinarians to proactively address cattle lameness¹⁰. In the UK, the Dairy Cows Lameness Manifesto¹¹ is an example of a local initiative to incrementally reduce lameness in dairy herds and positively impact cattle welfare.

Overall, reducing lameness in dairy cows requires a shared commitment between veterinarians and farmers, combining early detection, effective pain management, and proactive welfare initiatives. While challenges in perception and implementation persist, coordinated efforts such as national and local campaigns demonstrate that meaningful progress is both necessary and achievable.

References

^{1. Report of the Panel on Animal Health and Welfare. Scientific report of EFSA prepared by the Animal Health and Animal Welfare Unit on the effects of farming systems on dairy cow welfare and disease. Annex EFSA J. 2009, 1143, 1–284.}

^{2. Garvey M. Lameness in Dairy Cow Herds: Disease Aetiology, Prevention and Management. Dairy. 2022; 3(1):199-210. https://doi.org/10.3390/dairy3010016.}

^{3. 33EFSA AHAW Panel (EFSA Panel on Animal Health and Animal Welfare), Nielsen SS, Alvarez J, Bicout DJ, Calistri P, Canali E, Drewe JA, Garin‐Bastuji B, Gonzales Rojas JL, Schmidt CG, Herskin M, Michel V, Miranda Chueca MA, Padalino B, Roberts HC, Spoolder H, Stahl K, Velarde A, Viltrop A, De Boyer des Roches A, Jensen MB, Mee J, Green M, Thulke H-H, Bailly‐Caumette E, Candiani D, Lima E, Van der Stede Y and Winckler C, 2023. Scientific Opinion on the welfare of dairycows. EFSA Journal 2023;21(5):7993, 177 pp. https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2023.7993}

^{4. Archer, S.; Bell, N.; Huxley, J. Lameness in UK dairy cows: A review of the current status. Practice 2010, 32, 492–504.}

^{5. Nalon E, Stevenson P. Addressing Lameness in Farmed Animals: An Urgent Need to Achieve Compliance with EU Animal Welfare Law. Animals (Basel). 2019 Aug 19;9(8):576. doi: 10.3390/ani9080576. PMID: 31430914; PMCID: PMC6720678.}

^{6. Lameness in dairy cows. TFS-Ruminants-Equines-2024-04-EN. Version 2 – January 2024.https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14730667.}

^{7. Van Nuffel, A.; Zwertvaegher, I.; Pluym, L.; Van Weyenberg, S.; Thorup, V.M.; Pastell, M.; Sonck, B.; Saeys, W. Lameness Detection in Dairy Cows: Part 1. How to Distinguish between Non-Lame and Lame Cows Based on Differences in Locomotion or Behavior. Animals 2015, 5, 838–860.}

^{8. Warnick, L.D.; Janssen, D.; Guard, C.L.; Gröhn, Y.T. The Effect of Lameness on Milk Production in Dairy Cows. J. Dairy Sci. 2001, 84, 1988–1997.}

^{9. Nagel D, Wieringa R, Ireland J, Olson ME. The use of meloxicam oral suspension to treat musculoskeletal lameness in cattle. Vet Med (Auckl). 2016 Nov 11;7:149- 155. doi: 10.2147/VMRR.S112200. PMID: 30050847; PMCID: PMC6044795.}

^{10. Federation of Veterinarians in Europe. FVE position on Welfare of Dairy Cows: Lameness. 2019.https://www.fve.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/002-FVE-positioncattle-lameness_adopted.pdf.}

^{11. The GB Dairy Cow Lameness Manifesto. https://ruminanthw.org.uk/dairy-cowlameness/ . Accessed March 5th 2025.}

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The impact of lameness on cow welfare

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Causes, consequences and early treatment approaches

Barriers to implementing on-farm pain management in cattle

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The impact of lameness on cow welfare

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