Lameness is the most costly welfare problem in dairy farming, affecting up to 25% of dairy cows in some herds. Evidence-based prevention and detection dramatically reduce this preventable suffering.
Dairy cow lameness is one of the best-documented examples of a major, preventable welfare problem that persists because it is normalized within an industry. A herd lameness prevalence of 25% would be considered an emergency in companion animal medicine but is accepted as ordinary in dairy farming. Lame cows experience genuine chronic pain — limb pain that affects every movement, every step, every transition between lying and standing. Research using pain scoring systems demonstrates that lameness causes suffering equivalent to moderate-to-severe pain in humans. The economic case for lameness prevention is also strong: lame cows produce less milk and reproduce less effectively. Yet the gap between the evidence base for prevention and the actual prevalence of lameness in commercial herds remains enormous, driven by inadequate monitoring and the absence of regulatory welfare requirements.