SHEEP producers heard about new research on lameness, which suggests that foot-trimming may cause more problems than it solves.

Richard Phillips from Swale Vets told a meeting at Marrick Abbey Farm, Richmond, that lameness costs the industry an estimated £42 million a year.

With individual cases costing about £6 per ewe annually, profitability in a 500-ewe flock with three per cent lameness would reduce by about £3,000 a year.

Traditional methods of treating lame sheep usually involved foot-trimming, but the latest scientific research showed it was better to leave the horn to grow naturally in the majority of cases, said Mr Phillips. The Warwick University research has led to a five-point lameness plan and a campaign to reduce levels in the national flock.

Mr Phillips said: “The most recent trials have shown that many cases of lameness are a direct result of inappropriate foot trimming. The practice can also exacerbate existing foot problems and delay healing.

“This principle may be hard to accept, but the evidence supports this theory. The only occasion when it may be beneficial to trim the hoof is when a large piece of horn has come loose and needs to be tidied up, or when an animal has a foot abscess.

“Severe trimming opens up the foot to further infection and the shears can encourage the spread of disease from one animal to another.”

Mr Phillips said the key to reducing lameness is regular mobility monitoring, correct identification of the causal factor and immediate, appropriate treatment. “If scald is found, no trimming is required. Ewes should be given an injection of antibiotic, with lambs treated using an antibiotic foot spray.

If the infection is epidemic, a footbath is also a good idea.”

Footrot is caused by the same bacteria as scald and he stressed, infected sheep should not have their feet trimmed.

A more effective option was to give an injection of a longacting antibiotic and apply an antibiotic spray. The animal should be isolated, if possible, with culling advised for ewes which have succumbed to the disease on more than two occasions.

Contagious Ovine Dermatitis (CODD) was recently identified as another major cause.

It initially occurs at the top of the hoof and spreads downwards, towards the toe. Mr Phillips said: “Infected sheep should not have their feet trimmed; instead, an injectable antibiotic and an antibiotic footbath should be used, in conjunction with veterinary advice.

“During the first year of a CODD outbreak, 30-40 per cent of the flock can be affected. In extreme examples, the whole hoof can fall away. We usually see the number of cases falling sharply after the first wave of infection and levelling off at one to two per cent of the flock.”

The meeting was part of a series of events led by Eblex, including SAC Consulting.

Marrick Abbey Farm is one of 19 taking part in the trials.

Meetings will be posted on the website at eblex.org.uk.