Lameness is one of the most prevalent and welfare-significant conditions in dairy cattle, causing chronic pain and reduced productivity, yet much of it is preventable through improved housing and management.
Lameness causes chronic pain that is sustained over weeks or months in affected cows. Pain assessment research shows lame cows have elevated pain biomarkers and altered gait that persists even when lameness appears mild. Affected cows are reluctant to move to feed, water, and milking, compounding welfare impacts through reduced nutrition. In herds with inadequate locomotion scoring and treatment protocols, lame cows may go weeks without treatment. Prevention through flooring improvements, adequate lying space, appropriate nutrition, and regular hoof care is both more cost-effective and more humane than treating established lameness. Higher welfare certification schemes increasingly set maximum acceptable lameness prevalence thresholds.