Spring has started after a wet winter, with dense feed on the ground on a lot of farms.
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When it is damp underfoot it is common to see some lameness occurring in sheep.
It is important to investigate the cause of lameness quickly.
There are many different causes of lameness, some infectious and some due to environmental conditions.
Lameness is more likely to be an issue when feet are wet for a prolonged period.
This is particularly likely on dense pasture such as clover, especially if it has been irrigated or after rain.
Ovine Interdigital Dermatitis (OID) occurs when sheep’s feet have been damaged by water over a period of time.
This leads to overgrowth of normal skin bacteria. This causes the skin of the foot to be red and sweaty.
OID can look like the early stages of footrot, but these are different conditions with different causes.
OID will resolve once the feet are able to dry out. This can happen just from a change in environment, or if the sheep are footbathed.
There will be no under-running of the hard hoof with OID, it only affects the skin.
You might hear of people using the term ‘scald’ to describe lame sheep.
While some people use this term to refer to OID others will use it to mean benign footrot.
Footrot spreads in wet, warm conditions. Both benign and virulent footrot are caused by the bacteria D. nodosus.
Benign footrot does less damage to less sheep in a mob due to the bacteria producing lower amounts of the enzyme that damages the hard horn of the hoof.
Virulent footrot is the more severe condition, causing more damage to the feet of more sheep. Footrot is notifiable in NSW.
Foot abscess can also occur in wet conditions. It is an infection deeper in the foot, usually infecting the joint.
Benign footrot can cause dermatitis between the toes, but rarely leads to severe 'under-running' of the hoof
This often leads to particularly bad lameness in the affected foot with the joint being visibly swollen and hot to touch in the initial stages.
The earlier you recognise the cause of lameness the more likely you are to be able to control the issue leading to happier sheep that gain/keep condition.
If you are yarding all your sheep, for example at shearing, it is a good practice to look for signs of lameness in the flock in the paddock first.
Lame mobs should be examined to determine cause of lameness and should be yarded last to avoid the possibility of spreading contagious causes of lameness to unaffected mobs.
If possible, avoid yarding sheep while the yards are wet.
If unavoidable, consider running sheep through a zinc sulphate footbath on the way out of the yards.
This can help reduce the risk of sheep developing foot abscess.
If you would like lame sheep examined or if you would like more information on the causes of lameness, please contact your nearest Local Land Services Animal health staff.
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