Hoof health is essential for not only the overall health of the animal, but also for her welfare. Digital dermatitis (DD), or hairy heel warts, is an extremely painful condition for dairy cattle, reducing their ability to walk to and from the milking parlor, or to the feed bunk. Based on USDA NAHMS 2017 data, 16.8% of all cows and 2.6% of bred heifers have lameness on a dairy operation.

Just like a mature milking cow, heifers are not immune to DD. Digital dermatitis is the highest cause of lameness in bred heifers, with 70.9% of all heifer lameness contributed to DD, more so than in the lactating herd where it was reported DD infected 36.0% of lame cows. 

In this recorded webinar, Regional Dairy Educator Tina Kohlman discusses how nutrition management, digital dermatitis prevention and control, transition management into milking, and housing management have an impact on heifer lameness.  For additional information, please visit https://dairy.extension.wisc.edu/articles/hoof-health-starts-with-the-heifer/.