Smallholders Insurance from Greenlands

Author Topic: Lameness with no obvious cause  (Read 4356 times)

Womble

  • Joined Mar 2009
  • Stirlingshire, Central Scotland
Lameness with no obvious cause
« on: June 30, 2017, 12:03:59 am »
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:
"All fungi are edible. Some fungi are only edible once." -Terry Pratchett

SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #1 on: June 30, 2017, 12:28:58 am »
Which foot is it?
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

Womble

  • Joined Mar 2009
  • Stirlingshire, Central Scotland
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #2 on: June 30, 2017, 01:05:47 am »
Front left.
"All fungi are edible. Some fungi are only edible once." -Terry Pratchett

SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #3 on: June 30, 2017, 01:47:41 am »
Ah.  If you'd said a rear foot, I'd have said check her udder.

I wonder if she could have jarred her shoulder?
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

Womble

  • Joined Mar 2009
  • Stirlingshire, Central Scotland
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #4 on: June 30, 2017, 08:10:05 am »
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 :(
"All fungi are edible. Some fungi are only edible once." -Terry Pratchett

twizzel

  • Joined Apr 2012
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #5 on: June 30, 2017, 08:14:03 am »
Could you give her some metacam?

Sbom

  • Joined Jul 2012
  • Staffordshire
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #6 on: June 30, 2017, 09:05:15 am »
I'd give some metacam and see if there is any improvement

Marches Farmer

  • Joined Dec 2012
  • Herefordshire
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #7 on: June 30, 2017, 12:33:51 pm »
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?

Old Shep

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • North Yorkshire
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #8 on: June 30, 2017, 07:27:36 pm »
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.
Helen - (used to be just Shep).  Gordon Setters, Border Collies and chief lambing assistant to BigBennyShep.

Womble

  • Joined Mar 2009
  • Stirlingshire, Central Scotland
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #9 on: July 01, 2017, 12:12:40 am »
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!!
"All fungi are edible. Some fungi are only edible once." -Terry Pratchett

Penninehillbilly

  • Joined Sep 2011
  • West Yorks
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #10 on: July 01, 2017, 03:12:18 am »
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.

Womble

  • Joined Mar 2009
  • Stirlingshire, Central Scotland
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #11 on: July 01, 2017, 08:43:49 am »
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 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
« Last Edit: July 01, 2017, 08:46:34 am by Womble »
"All fungi are edible. Some fungi are only edible once." -Terry Pratchett

DartmoorLiz

  • Joined Jan 2012
  • Devon
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #12 on: July 01, 2017, 01:05:40 pm »
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:
Never ever give up.

Marches Farmer

  • Joined Dec 2012
  • Herefordshire
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #13 on: July 01, 2017, 02:55:33 pm »
As I understand it only a long-acting oxytetracycline presently has a chance against CODD. 

Womble

  • Joined Mar 2009
  • Stirlingshire, Central Scotland
Re: Lameness with no obvious cause
« Reply #14 on: July 01, 2017, 03:30:16 pm »
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 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.
« Last Edit: July 01, 2017, 03:35:18 pm by Womble »
"All fungi are edible. Some fungi are only edible once." -Terry Pratchett

 

Forum sponsors

FibreHut Energy Helpline Thomson & Morgan Time for Paws Scottish Smallholder & Grower Festival Ark Farm Livestock Movement Service

© The Accidental Smallholder Ltd 2003-2024. All rights reserved.

Design by Furness Internet

Site developed by Champion IS