Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
FOOT EXAMINATION IN LIMPING SHEEP
1. Look for a lump of mud, a stone, or a sharp splinter caught
between the toes of the hoof that seems to be sore.
2. If there is nothing there, check the gland. Sheep have a deep
gland between the two toes of each foot, with a small opening
on the top of the front of the hoof. This can be seen readily if
you look for it. (The gland's secretion is waxy and has a faint,
strange odor that is said to scent the grass and reinforce the
herding instinct.) When these glands become plugged with
mud, the secretion is retained and lameness occurs.
3. Squeeze the gland. Sometimes a fairly large blob of waxy
substance pops out. If this was the problem, then the sheep
should improve.
4. If there is no evidence of a plugged gland or a foreign object,
try to determine if a hoof disease is present. You have to
have a clear idea of what a normal hoof looks like before you
can spot a diseased one. If you're not familiar with sheep
hooves, compare the sore one with another foot.
5. If everything else looks good, check for an injury (including
cuts) that might be causing the problem. We once checked a
limping ewe and found that she'd cut her udder and was get-
ting hit with a fl y-strike!
on the opposite hand when trimming hooves to avoid accidental injury if the
sheep kicks.
Foot Rot
Sheep raisers once thought that foot rot was a spontaneous disease of wet
weather. But it is actually a bacterial disease, and according to Ann Wells,
a veterinarian whose specialty is sheep and goats, it is “one of the biggest
disease problems for the sheep industry.” She also says, “The best prevention
is to not buy it! Quarantining all new animals is also critical, as it gives you a
chance to make sure you are not adding it to your fl ock.”
Two different bacteria contribute to foot rot. The fi rst,
Fusobacterium
necrophorum,
is always present in soil but by itself won't cause any problems.
When the second bacterium,
Dichelobacter nodosus,
is also present, the disease
