Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Clinical Signs
Lameness will be observed from time to time in all flocks. This may result
from foot injury, foot breakage, sheep fighting around feed bunks, rams
butting ewes, sharp objects stuck in the hoof, mud, brittle hooves cracking,
and injury to other joints in the legs.
In more advanced cases, the foot will be red, swollen and appear moist or
grayish-yellow when examined. The foot will also be sensitive when
pressure is applied.
Signs of Infection
The first sign of a foot rot infection is when the skin between the claws of
the hoof begins to swell. Swelling usually appears twenty-four hours after
infection. The skin between the toes may be very red and tender and the toes
may separate because of all the swelling. This is very painful to the animal
and can cause lameness. A crack can develop along the infected part and is
yellow in color. The foot will have a foul odor. tendons, and joints in the
area can become infected which is much harder to treat. There is a condition
known as super foot rot that is seen in some animals. Super foot rot is just
like normal foot rot only infection occurs much faster and is usually much
more severe. Most normal foot rot treatments will not cure this foot rot and a
veterinarian should be contacted immediately.
Treatment
The best way to treat foot rot is to catch it as early as possible. The infected
animals should be separated away from the herd as soon as possible to
prevent the infection from spreading and allow the animal a better
environment for healing. The first treatment is to clean the foot thoroughly
and examine the foot to determine that it is definitely foot rot that is causing
the infection. Keeping the wound clean and using an antibiotic ointment may
help reduce the spread of infection. Foot rot is usually treated with an
antimicrobial product. Penicillin, tetracycline, and other antibacterial
medicines are often used to treat normal cases of foot rot. Usually the
antimicrobial product is non-prescription but sometimes a veterinarian may
choose to use a prescription medication. It is critical to closely monitor the
animals to make sure they are responding to treatment. The infected animals
should be kept dry until the healing has occurred. If the animal is showing
no signs of recovery after three to four days the bacteria could have infected
the other tissues of the foot and along with a veterinarian the owner should
decide whether to amputate the bad foot or to put the animal down
Prevention
The infected animals can serve as the source of infection for the whole herd
because they will spread the bacteria throughout the environment. The
bacteria can live without a host for one to ten months. Once another animal
gets a cut or crack in the soft tissue between their toes the bacteria can infect
the animal. This is why infected animals must be kept away from the rest. A
good way to prevent foot rot is to keep any foreign objects that may cut or
damage the foot out of the environment. This should be a practice regardless
of whether a herd has foot rot or not. The cuts are what allow the bacteria to
enter the foot tissue and cause the infection. Some cattle feeders add zinc to
the feed mixes and may vaccinate the animals for foot rot. Zinc is important
to maintaining the skin and hooves of cattle. Cattle deficient in zinc will
become infected easier than cattle with adequate zinc in their diet.
Limitations to Treatment
Sheep treated in footbaths of zinc sulfate, copper sulfate or formalin for
footrot should not be allowed to walk through the solutions and back
through muddy areas or on grass wet with dew. This will dilute the
compounds on the feet and render the treatment ineffective.
Lame sheep should be separated from healthy sheep to retard the exposure to
the bacteria causing footrot.
Sheep not responding to the foot bath in two weeks following treatment
should have feet trimmed very closely (bleeding may occur) and a topical
spray applied after the bleeding stops. The feet must be trimmed down to the
healthy tissue if treatment is expected to be effective.
Sheep not responding to treatment following footbaths and trimming with
topical application should be culled. Otherwise, they will remain as carriers
and affect the healthy flock. Cull all mature animals with deformed feet,
they probably are carriers. It only takes one carrier in a flock to continuously
spread infection to other sheep in the pasture or drylot.
When purchasing sheep, never buy from a flock in which you have observed
lame sheep. Bring newly purchased sheep home and keep them confined for
two or three weeks and observe for lameness. If the animals begin to limp,
examine the feet and treat for footrot by trimming closely and applying a
topical spray of 10% formalin, 20% copper sulfate or 10% zinc sulfate. If
they continue to show signs of lameness, contact the person from whom you
purchased the animals to negotiate with them or sell the animals rather than
expose the entire healthy flock.