Effect of routine claw trimming on claw temperature in dairy cows measured by infrared thermography

Abstract

Infrared thermography (IRT) was used to assess the effect of routine claw trimming on claw temperature. In total, 648 IRT observations each were collected from 81 cows housed in 6 tiestalls before and 3 wk after claw trimming. The feet were classified as either healthy (nonlesion group, n = 182) or affected with infectious foot disorders (group IFD, n = 142). The maximal surface temperatures of the coronary band and skin and the difference of the maximal temperatures (ΔT) between the lateral and medial claws of the respective foot were assessed. Linear mixed models, correcting for the hierarchical structure of the data, ambient temperature, and infectious status of the claws, were developed to evaluate the effect of time in relation to the trimming event (d 0 versus d 21) and claw (medial versus lateral). Front feet and hind feet were analyzed separately. Ambient temperature and infectious foot status were identified as external and internal factors, respectively, that significantly affected claw temperature. Before claw trimming, the lateral claws of the hind feet were significantly warmer compared with the medial claws, whereas such a difference was not evident for the claws of the front feet. At d 21, ΔT of the hind feet was reduced by ≥ 0.25 °C, whereas it was increased by ≤ 0.13 °C in the front feet compared with d 0. Therefore, trimming was associated with a remarkable decrease of ΔT of the hind claws. Equalizing the weight bearing of the hind feet by routine claw trimming is associated with a measurable reduction of ΔT between the paired hind claws.

Claw Trimming as a Lameness Management Practice and the Association with Welfare and Production in Dairy Cows

“…Claw temperatures of the trimmed foot have also been demonstrated as a measure of physiological changes associated with CT [5,92]. Corrective and functional CT led to a decrease in claw temperature of the feet affected with CHDL [4] and infectious claw lesions [92], respectively.…”

“…Claw temperatures of the trimmed foot have also been demonstrated as a measure of physiological changes associated with CT [5,92]. Corrective and functional CT led to a decrease in claw temperature of the feet affected with CHDL [4] and infectious claw lesions [92], respectively. Although an initial increase in claw temperature was observed following the use of an electric grinder in leveling the claws, both studies attributed such temperature reductions to the positive effect of CT in correcting claw dimensions and weight bearing.…”

Comparison of Low- and High-Cost Infrared Thermal Imaging Devices for the Detection of Lameness in Dairy Cattle

“…Previous studies into cattle lameness using IRT devices have used research-orientated cameras with high specifications [25,26,36,37]. These cameras are expensive, up to GBP 20,000, and fragile, making on-farm use impractical and uneconomical [24,[38][39][40][41]. Owing to technological advances, there are now low-cost IRT devices (LCDs) on the market, with comparatively lower specifications; these have not been tested for effectiveness in lameness detection [23], but have previously been determined to be adequate for some purposes, such as body temperature assessment at a close range [42].…”

Precision Livestock Farming in Swine Welfare: A Review for Swine Practitioners

“…Various studies have shown that infrared thermography is a means to non-invasively detect dissipation of heat in individual animals or specific regions of the body for the purpose of rapidly detecting diseases such as mastitis [44,104], locomotion disorders [105,106,107], and respiratory disease [108] in bovine. Skin measurement sites for pigs using infrared thermography, with the highest correlation to body temperature, are the ear base, eyes and udder [42].…”