An article recently published by Iowa State’s College of Veterinary Medicine discussed a disease that is the leading cause of lameness in cattle. Lameness is a clinical sign of a more severe disorder that results in the ability to move the body about, typically in response to pain, injury or abnormal anatomy, according to petMD.

Bovine digital dermatitis is found primarily in dairy cows, but has been found in beef cattle as well. A cow with this disease experiences painful lesions on the bottom of their hoof. The lesions may appear initially as a raw, red, oval ulcer on the back of the heel, according to an article in “The Western Producer,” a weekly agricultural trade publication.

“It is a very important issue for the dairy cattle industry and has been for some time,” said Paul Plummer, assistant professor of veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine. “As the leading cause of lameness it impacts animal welfare as well as productivity. Our research team’s goal is to address issues of importance to the industry that allow us to improve animal health and welfare. As the disease has recently become more important on the beef cattle side these same issues apply and fit well.”

Plummer and the other ISU researchers have been researching this disease for the past six years and plan to keep learning until they know how to better control the disease.