The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Womble on June 30, 2017, 12:03:59 am
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One of our ewes suddenly went very lame a week ago, and I can't figure out what's going on! She's obviously in pain when walking on it (not quite hopping lame, but close).
There's no sign of footrot or scald. Everything looks and smells normal. Nothing is swollen or hot, and I can't trigger a pain response by pressing on any part of the hoof, foot or leg.
Any ideas what might be the matter, and what I should do about it?
Thanks folks! :thumbsup:
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Which foot is it?
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Front left.
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Ah. If you'd said a rear foot, I'd have said check her udder.
I wonder if she could have jarred her shoulder?
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I wondered that as well, since I haven't seen her grazing on her knees at all (i.e. if it's a shoulder problem, kneeling wouldn't help it, so maybe that's why she's not doing it).
I've told her to take it easy and get plenty of rest, but she said something about the twins driving her demented, and lactation being a full time job don't you know. Poor girl :(
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Could you give her some metacam?
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I'd give some metacam and see if there is any improvement
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Have you cleaned her foot thoroughly by soaking it in warm water, then looked for a thorn or piece of grit embedded in the sole or under the edge of the horn?
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In the early stages of CODD there can be no obvious cause, but if you press around the line where the hoof joins onto the leg there is some tenderness on one particular spot. In that case early treatment with antibiotics can save it turning into something really nasty.
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Well.......
She seemed a little bit better this afternoon, but I spotted some blood on the inside of the problem hoof.
When I caught her to have another look, it turns out there's (now?) a crack high up on the hoof. So, a foot abscess that has now burst? Early CODD? (oh please no, but I'm hoping that's unlikely since the only new animal that has come here in the two years was our new tup last year, and he has been apart from the ewes since December).
Either way, she's in a field on her own now, with her lamb, and I'll be calling the vet tomorrow for advice.
In the meantime, here is a really poor photo!!
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May i join in Womble?
What is CODD.?
I have a goat, right fore, lame, can't find anything. Trimmed feet again today.
When limping it is the leg that they are putting weight on when they lift their head?
Clean between claws, not inflamed.
I'll check round top of hoof tomorrow.
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OK, now it's not raining, I've had another look and taken a better photo (attached). She's also limping a lot less this morning, so my hope is that this was an abscess which has now burst. The toe of the hoof has a pocket (actually it's sort of missing, and no I didn't cut it off!), so maybe something has got pushed up inside there to cause the problem.
Penninehillbilly - yes, of course you can join in. The rules are that you need to scratch your head about a problem for at least a week, and only then post about it on TAS.
Within 12 hours, new information will come to light which will make you look as though a) you haven't got a clue what you're doing, b) you didn't check your animals properly in the first place and c) is probably nothing much, but could be something far far worse, which you will then worry about incessantly. (CODD (https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0ahUKEwiQ-dHGyufUAhXmKcAKHVaMBnoQFggoMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fhccmpw.org.uk%2Findex.php%2Ftools%2Frequired%2Ffiles%2Fdownload%3FfID%3D3908&usg=AFQjCNGIKAqdAhZtUXe5euNLDUAKVrdUcA&cad=rja) is a relatively new disease to the UK, which looks a lot like this, with infection around the top of the hoof which then tracks downwards, and is really, really nasty once it takes hold in a flock.) Good luck! ;D
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If you think its CODD and treat it like CODD and it is CODD then you've treated it early and hopefully it is just a one off random infection that will now hopefully go away and never come back.
If you treat it like CODD and it is not CODD then you've used an inappropriate antibiotic on just one sheep which is unlikely to have an effect on the effectiveness of that antibiotic when you do need it.
If you don't treat it like CODD and it turns out it is CODD ...
:coat:
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As I understand it only a long-acting oxytetracycline presently has a chance against CODD.
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Yup, I take your point, DartmoorLiz. The vet said it was very unlikely to be CODD since it was only a small crack in the hoof, and not the whole of the front wall of the hoof that had detached from the tissue underneath.
Also the moment there was anything to see externally, she started to move much better. In my mind that also points to it being 'only' an abscess (perhaps Bonnie just does this every year (http://www.accidentalsmallholder.net/forum/index.php?topic=75218) to keep me on my toes? :-[ ).
The funny thing is, I was working in the garden earlier and managed to get a thorn stuck up under my fingernail. I can just hear Bonnie now saying "Painful, isn't it? At least yours isn't infected, you don't have to walk on it, and you have opposable thumbs so you can get it out again. Muppet."
The vet has given me two injections of Alamycin LA, to give three days apart. Thanks for the info so far - I'll keep you all posted.
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So your sheep is called Bonnie? Of all the names, my lame goat is called Bonnie !
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Aha! So if I just rename her, the problem will go away? Fantastic! :thumbsup:
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Aha! So if I just rename her, the problem will go away? Fantastic! :thumbsup:
LOL
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This thread is EXACTLY the sort of thing I need to read on a Sunday morning, when our sick chicken is not recovering and our washing machine is not working, and if I don't cover the currant bushes immediately I'll lose the fruit to the birds and the 'to do' list is already continuing onto the back of the paper....
so thank you!
Edited to add that of course I realise that if I spent LESS time on Tas and more time being industrious then my to do list would be considerably shorter :coat:
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She's ten times better today - very nearly normal in fact.
Of course, one of the others has started limping for no apparent reason now. I think they're playing games with me TBH.
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Hi Womble! This sounds very similar to one of my girls. She was very lame, no sign of anything. Had the vet out, she couldn't find anything.Wondered if it was arthritis. Some time later I noticed a horizontal crack just below the coronary band. I gave her Alamycin L.A. There was a small amount blood once as well. She seems OK now, but seems to lie down a lot more than the others. She's not lame though. I now use a zinc sulphate foot bath on a regular basis and spray her foot regularly with blue spray to prevent any infection.