I have just come back from the International Lameness in Ruminants conference in Munich. This is a conference where scientists, veterinarians, hoof trimmers and interested parties come together to talk about lameness issues, and the latest research results are presented. It is a fantastic opportunity to catch up with what is going on around the world from a lameness perspective.
It is very obvious that the biggest problem facing most farmers worldwide is Digital Dermatitis (DD). Most of the presented research was about this disease and has been every time I have been to this conference. In fact, if it wasn’t for DD there probably wouldn’t be a conference.
DD is a nasty skin disease that seems to be very difficult to understand. It was first described by an Italian professor in the early 70’s. Since that time there have been more questions raised than answered. Fortunately, in New Zealand, we don’t have the problem to the same extent as our colleagues overseas and I have yet to see a cow in New Zealand who was actually lame because of DD. However, there are reports that 60 – 70% of farms in NZ may have low occurrences of the disease – maybe 1-4% with the occasional exception. DD lesions have been observed in dairy cows in New Zealand for at least 10 years without any significant consequences, which is quite different to the experiences of farmers in other parts of the world, and this probably contributes to the sense of apathy over the potential risks and consequences it could cause in our industry.
What strikes me is that not many people in New Zealand seem to be overly worried about DD. Yet if (with a big “if”) DD gets established in NZ, like it has in nearly all dairy countries in the world, it would make farming much trickier and less profitable.
Now in contrast to DD, the Mycoplasma Bovis bacteria has got farmers much more on the edge of their seats. We have had several farmers calling us to find out what measures we have put in place to make sure we are not contributing to the spread of the disease. I can totally appreciate the concern farmers have about this issue but I wonder why we are so much more relaxed with DD. Is it because Mycoplasma Bovis got much more airtime? Or is it because of the frog syndrome? If you put a frog in a pan of cold water and you warm it up slowly to the boil the frog will boil to death as it doesn’t notice the problem until it is too late. Mycoplasma Bovis would be much more like dropping a frog into warm water. The nastiness of the disease is instantly noticeable and that triggers a response much earlier.
I would encourage you to become more educated about DD; how to recognise it and what treatments are most effective, and the potential damage it could do to your business if it were to become more established here.
