Salem Shebl E, Mesalam Ayman, Abd El Raouf Mustafa, Mahmmod Yasser, Abdelaal Ahmed M, Abdelgalil Khaled S, Monir Ahmed
Department of Surgery, Anesthesiology and Radiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Zagazig University, Zagazig, 44519, Egypt.
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Baker Institute for Animal Health, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA.
Trop Anim Health Prod. 2025 Aug 6;57(7):352. doi: 10.1007/s11250-025-04593-3.
Lameness is a major welfare and economic concern in the dairy industry. The aim of this study was to identify herd- and management-related risk factors for lameness, describe dairy cattle production practices in Egypt, and assess farm personnel's knowledge and perceptions of common foot lesions associated with lameness. A cross-sectional study of 16,098 dairy cows from 55 farms was conducted. Milking cows were visually assessed for locomotion as they exited the milking parlor using a 0-3 scoring system. The within-herd prevalence of lameness was calculated as the proportion of cows scoring ≥ 2. Management data were collected through structured questionnaires with farm managers, combined with direct observations and measurements on the farms. Farm personnel responsible for lameness management were evaluated on their ability to identify and provide information about the causes and treatments of seven common foot lesions using pictorial descriptors. A mixed-effects logistic regression model incorporating Farm ID as a random-effects variable was used to investigate risk factors for within-herd lameness prevalence. The final model revealed that adequate footbath disinfectant concentration (OR = 0.28, 95% CI: 0.16-0.5) and increased bedding abrasiveness (OR = 0.30, 95% CI: 0.15-0.6) were significantly associated with reduced odds of lameness, while sharp corners at the parlor exit were associated with increased lameness prevalence (OR = 1.9, 95% CI: 1.1-3.4). A significant interaction was observed between footbath disinfectant concentration and bedding abrasiveness (OR = 3.3, 95% CI: 1.1-9.8), indicating that the association between bedding type and lameness prevalence was modified by footbath adequacy. Specifically, bedding type was associated with lameness only when footbath disinfectant concentration was inadequate, while under adequate footbath conditions, lameness prevalence was uniformly low regardless of bedding type. Knowledge gaps were identified among farm personnel in diagnosing and treating lameness. These findings highlight the importance of optimizing footbath management and bedding quality to mitigate lameness risk and provide evidence-based recommendations for improving lameness prevention and animal welfare in Egyptian dairy herds. Implementing educational programs and establishing a foot-trimming certification body in Egypt could further enhance the capability of farm personnel in effectively managing foot lesions.
跛行是奶牛养殖业中一个主要的福利和经济问题。本研究的目的是确定与畜群和管理相关的跛行风险因素，描述埃及奶牛的生产实践，并评估农场工作人员对与跛行相关的常见足部病变的知识和认知。对来自55个农场的16098头奶牛进行了横断面研究。在挤奶牛离开挤奶厅时，使用0-3评分系统对其运动情况进行视觉评估。将得分≥2的奶牛比例计算为畜群内跛行患病率。通过与农场管理人员进行结构化问卷调查收集管理数据，并结合在农场的直接观察和测量。负责跛行管理的农场工作人员被评估其使用图片描述识别和提供七种常见足部病变的病因及治疗方法信息的能力。使用将农场ID作为随机效应变量的混合效应逻辑回归模型来研究畜群内跛行患病率的风险因素。最终模型显示，足浴消毒剂浓度充足（比值比[OR]=0.28，95%置信区间[CI]：0.16-0.5）和垫料粗糙度增加（OR=0.30，95%CI：0.15-0.6）与跛行几率降低显著相关，而挤奶厅出口处尖锐的角落与跛行患病率增加相关（OR=1.9，95%CI：1.1-3.4）。观察到足浴消毒剂浓度和垫料粗糙度之间存在显著交互作用（OR=3.3，95%CI：1.1-9.8），表明垫料类型与跛行患病率之间的关联因足浴是否充足而改变。具体而言，只有当足浴消毒剂浓度不足时，垫料类型才与跛行相关，而在足浴条件充足的情况下，无论垫料类型如何，跛行患病率均普遍较低。在农场工作人员中发现了诊断和治疗跛行方面的知识差距。这些发现凸显了优化足浴管理和垫料质量以降低跛行风险的重要性，并为改善埃及奶牛群的跛行预防和动物福利提供了基于证据的建议。在埃及实施教育项目并建立一个修蹄认证机构可以进一步提高农场工作人员有效管理足部病变的能力。
