NADIS disease bulletins are written
specifically for farmers, to increase awareness of prevalent conditions and
promote disease prevention and control, in order to benefit animal health and
welfare.
Farmers are advised to discuss their
individual farm circumstances with their veterinary surgeon
Superfoul
According to NADIS data
foul-in-the-foot has caused a high percentage of lameness in youngstock this
winter and on some farms “superfoul” has been reported
What
is “superfoul”?
Foul-in-the-foot
is an infection found between the digits caused by a combination of two
bacteria, which are normally present in the cow’s environment. These bacteria
invade through damaged hoof skin causing severe pain, swelling, and lameness.
Superfoul is probably a very severe form of foul, in which the damaged area of
skin rapidly increases in size and depth such that infection of the bones of
the hoof is common.
Superfoul may
also be linked to digital dermatitis. Indeed most cases are seen on farms with
digital dermatitis, and the spiral bacteria linked to digital dermatitis are
often found in cases of superfoul
Clinical
Signs
¨
Swelling of the feet, particularly at the front
¨
Increased temperature
¨
Sudden, severe lameness. This is usually in one limb
only
¨
Large masses of tissue rapidly develop around deep
craters in the damaged skin
¨
Infection of the pedal bone may develop, with
swelling spreading up the leg
Diagnosis
·
On the clinical signs described above
·
These are much more severe than the normal
foul-in-the-foot
·
Superfoul is often suspected when normal foul
treatment has no effect and the damaged areas continue to get worse.
·
If you haven’t seen superfoul before, get your vet
to confirm it for you.
Treatment
·
Treat early. Get your vet to advise you on the best
regime of treatment. Delayed treatment will result in failure and loss of the
cow (or, at best, loss of the toe).
·
Treat often and for a long period. Foul is often
treated with a single long-acting antibiotic. This is of no value for treating
superfoul.
·
Use high doses of antibiotics.
·
Injections of anti-inflammatories significantly
improve cow well-being and help to restore the cow to normal production more
quickly
·
In some cases, where infection has penetrated the
foot joint, amputation of the claw is the only way of salvaging the cow.
Prevention
Environmental
hygiene and footbathing are the main control measures
1)
Keep cattle feet as clean as possible
2)
Improve walkways and tracks. A good walkway need
only be one cow wide
3)
Fill-in muddy and stony areas around troughs and
gateways
4)
In housing, ensure no pooling of slurry. Scrape
efficiently and at least twice a day.
5)
Use copper sulphate or formalin foot-baths
routinely, up to twice daily if there is a significant problem. Get your vet to
advise you on the best regime.
Richard Laven PhD BVetMed MRCVS
Copyright © NADIS 2004
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