I am always surprised to read about cracked and other hoof problems
which used to be a problem before Cowmats and Hoofmats became
available and have been sold internationally for decades.
They are made of strong plastic material and hold water with copper
sulphate if hoof infections are a problem or zinc sulphate if hooves
just need hardening to reduce cracking and future infections, and
placed where cows can walk over them on the way into the shed, dairy,
parlour. The product then soaks in to hooves during milking.
For beef they would need to sit on a piece of ply and be placed in a
narrowed gateway entering the paddock (not the exit one to a muddy
lane which would reduce the effect of the chemical) and them moved on
a carry tray to the next gate.
See the following sites for suppliers closest to you.
www.sweetmans.co.nz
www.shoof.co.nz
>Good Afternoon List Friends,
>
>At time I retired from Alberta Agriculture in 1995 we had been hearing
>of a "cracked hoof syndrome" in beef cattle for several years,
>especially in well fed purebred breeding herds. We had some studies
>which suggested that a zinc deficiency may have been implicated.
>Another study suggested that it was more common in cows who had grown
>too fast when young or were carrying too much weight at maturity.
>
>Today I saw a comment on the "Grazers Edge" email discussion group from
>Katy Watts, Rocky Mountain Research and Consulting, 491 West CR 8 North
>Center, CO 81125. She has a very interesting website which contains
>about 15 pages that discuss various aspects of the implications of high
>soluble carbohydrate contents in grass and laminitis in horses
>Regards
>Ross Gould, P.Ag.
Calgary, Alberta
Vaughan
Hamilton
New Zealand
