Farm-Level Risk Factors for Lameness in 659 German Dairy Herds Kept in Loose Housing Systems
Anna Tillack,
Roswitha Merle,
Kerstin-Elisabeth Müller,
Martina Hoedemaker,
Katharina Charlotte Jensen,
Andreas W. Oehm,
Marcus Klawitter,
Annegret Stock
Affiliations
Anna Tillack
Farm Animal Clinic, Division for Ruminants and Camelids, Unit for Internal Medicine and Surgery, School of Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität Berlin, 14163 Berlin, Germany
Roswitha Merle
School of Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Freie Universität Berlin, 14163 Berlin, Germany
Kerstin-Elisabeth Müller
Farm Animal Clinic, Division for Ruminants and Camelids, Unit for Internal Medicine and Surgery, School of Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität Berlin, 14163 Berlin, Germany
Martina Hoedemaker
Clinic for Cattle, Clinical Centre for Farm Animals, University of Veterinary Medicine Foundation, 30173 Hannover, Germany
Katharina Charlotte Jensen
School of Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Freie Universität Berlin, 14163 Berlin, Germany
Andreas W. Oehm
Clinic for Ruminants with Ambulatory and Herd Health Services, Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich, 85764 Munich, Germany
Marcus Klawitter
Zoetis Deutschland GmbH, 10785 Berlin, Germany
Annegret Stock
Farm Animal Clinic, Division for Ruminants and Camelids, Unit for Internal Medicine and Surgery, School of Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität Berlin, 14163 Berlin, Germany
Six hundred fifty-nine farms in three regions of Germany (North: n = 240, East: n = 247, and South: n = 172) were included in the study, which aims at determining the association of management-related risk factors with farm-level lameness in German dairy herds. For each risk factor, a generalised linear regression model with negative binomial distribution and logit link was built. Results showed that cows housed in deep-bedded cubicles had a lower risk of being lame than cows housed in other cubicle types. A larger cubicle width was associated with a lower risk of being lame. Feeding a total mixed ration was associated with lower lameness prevalence (compared to feeding a partial mixed ration or single components). For first lactation cows, lameness assessment performed daily (compared to less than daily) and during other work tasks (compared to lameness assessment as a separate work task) were associated with lower risk for lameness. Finally, the present study provided evidence for crucial associations of management-related risk factors with lameness in German dairy cows, especially in the fields of cubicle design, feeding management, and lameness assessment.
