Prevalence and Associated Risk Factors of Lameness in Cows at Commercial Dairy Herds in Punjab, Pakistan

ABSTRACT Lameness is one of the biggest insults to the well-being and productivity of dairy cows, which results in colossal economic losses for dairy producers. Nevertheless, it is overlooked and least studied dairy problem in Pakistan. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence and associated risk factors of lameness at commercial dairy herds in Punjab, Pakistan. The sample size was 2,555 cows from 15 dairy herds assessed using a 5-point locomotion rating scale. A cow with a locomotion score of 3 or higher was considered to be lame. Lame cows were investigated for hoof and claw disorders based on clinical assessment. The prevalence of lameness at the herd-level ranged from 3.08% to 33.08% (overall = 14.20%). The prevalence based on severity showed that on all farms, the majority of cows were mildly lame (7.71%) followed in order by moderately lame (4.61%) and severely lame (1.88%). Prevalence of lameness was significantly higher (P