@!#$%&*# Foot Rot is consuming my life

[Stocker Steve]

Be sure that your minerals or your soils have adequate iodine.

Most commercial minerals do not have enough iodine in them. I was told they are limited due to concerns about iodine in dairy milk.

You can buy iodine in 25# pails or bags from a feed mill. Quit overpaying for commercial mineral and overpaying for meds by coming up with a custom mineral mix.

We are running over 200 head on rocky meadows and have one or two foot rot cases per year. It is often a young bull, so we now vaccinate bulls only for foot rot. Not sure if the vaccine works, but iodine is magic.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Talk to your vet and get a prescription for some aureomycin 100 crumbles. Mix them with your minerals. It will help prevent further problems. You'll probably still have to treat the current problems.

As stated above.
Have iodine added to their feed as well.

https://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.htm ... b0d0204ae5

This is the brand I use as well. IIRC there are different concentrations of it available, so be aware in dosing. I think my vet limited me to two week treatment using it. I cannot remember why now, chemical imbalance of some kind I suppose.

In the spring I have it mixed with a ton of feed. I can't remember the dosage either per ton. I haven't had foot rot in years. The feed mill knows the formula I think it cost me an additional ten bucks a ton.

 

[Dempster]

Talk to your vet and get a prescription for some aureomycin 100 crumbles. Mix them with your minerals. It will help prevent further problems. You'll probably still have to treat the current problems.

Just to make sure everyone is aware, this is entirely illegal, in more ways than one. If you're vet is writing you a script for this, he is liable, you are likely liable, and your feedmill is liable as well, if they mix it for you, which they probably won't since it isn't legal. The longer people keep doing this kind of thing, the sooner feed grade antibiotics will be taken away all together.

 

[TexasBred]

Talk to your vet and get a prescription for some aureomycin 100 crumbles. Mix them with your minerals. It will help prevent further problems. You'll probably still have to treat the current problems.

Just to make sure everyone is aware, this is entirely illegal, in more ways than one. If you're vet is writing you a script for this, he is liable, you are likely liable, and your feedmill is liable as well, if they mix it for you, which they probably won't since it isn't legal. The longer people keep doing this kind of thing, the sooner feed grade antibiotics will be taken away all together.

Refresh my memory. Why is illegal if the veterinarian prescribes it and your feed store sells you exactly what he prescribed and you mix it according to instructions?? I guess you could always shoot them up with a buttload of LA-200. (legally)

Personally I'd prefer a mineral with an elevated level of iodine. Most will have 100 ppm or even less but look for one as high as you can get it. 300 ppm. Buy some EDDI and mix with your mineral. Also see if your mineral manufacturer will include Zinpro 100 (Zinc Methionine Complex) into the mineral. This is not a cure but a long term benefit as it will harden the foot area making it less susceptible to bruising etc.

 

[Dempster]

CTC is not labeled to be used for foot rot and veterinarians are not permitted to prescribe feed grade antibiotics in an off label manner.

 

[talltimber]

It's probably not for foot rot. It's probably for anaplasmosis.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Some here may not be aware of how to tell if it is foot rot or an injury/absess. Foot rot makes the feet STINK - nasty. Put your finger between the toes & smell.
We always take couple pieces of baling twine, put them together and make a knot every couple inches. Then pick up foot & pull the knots between the toes back & forth. This will clean it out good. then Coppertox. I am surprised that you guys are having success with an antibiotic like Draxxin. LA200/LA300/Biomycin is the only thing I knew to work on foot rot. Hmmm, new for me. I will stick with 300 - works great. Rarely have a case, maybe 1/yr or less.

 

[elkwc]

Some here may not be aware of how to tell if it is foot rot or an injury/absess. Foot rot makes the feet STINK - nasty. Put your finger between the toes & smell.
We always take couple pieces of baling twine, put them together and make a knot every couple inches. Then pick up foot & pull the knots between the toes back & forth. This will clean it out good. then Coppertox. I am surprised that you guys are having success with an antibiotic like Draxxin. LA200/LA300/Biomycin is the only thing I knew to work on foot rot. Hmmm, new for me. I will stick with 300 - works great. Rarely have a case, maybe 1/yr or less.

Jeanne your post is the main reason why I like this forum. You read different opinions and experiences with the same issues. Like I stated in a previous post in all my years I had only seen 2-3 cases of fot rot. And it was in cases of cattle being contained in wet muddy lots. Was always told our environment was too arid too see it except in real wet years. I know for sure you don't see it around here for whatever reason. Then when I started going to west central OK I started seeing it. We have 2 pastures we usually see some in every year. The first case I found was on a Saturday. Talked to the locals at the feed store and among other things LA200/LA300 was suggested. We could buy it at the store so did and gave the cow a dose. Next week she was a lot worse. Then contacted the vet and he suggested Nuflor and we had it. It was also suggested the week before. Gave it and she started improving. Think I may of tried LA300 one more time. Then when I was out of Nuflor one time another vet gave us Draxxin. That time it worked on 1 out of 2 cows. Since then it has seemed to work on all. But have never had Nuflor not work. The latter 2 are the ones used around that area the most it seems. LA200/300 is used by a few. Again it seems we each see different results. One of my vets says it can be in the soil in those two pastures and why we have it there. I have talked to them about the iodine issue and they all say they feel I provide enough. This year hasn't been as bad but also has been drier overall. And the ponds have been dry a lot so they haven't stood in them several hours everyday.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Are you sure your not fighting ergot ? As it will cause lameness as well.

 

[elkwc]

Are you sure your not fighting ergot ? As it will cause lameness as well.

If you are talking to me I'm pretty sure. For several reasons. First they have the smell. I have took a tie rope and worked it between their toes. Also the year it was so bad after about 3 we took one to the vet and he verified it. I also wanted to get his input on treatment. Which was basically the same as we had been doing. Either Nuflor or Draxxin and turn out in a pasture with no ponds they could stand in or a good dry lot. Then later took another one and both times the vet verified it. So no doubt about them. Both vets say that the bacteria can live in the soil for a while so once you get it in a pasture you are more likely to have reoccurences in that pasture.

 

[Stocker Steve]

I am surprised that you guys are having success with an antibiotic like Draxxin. LA200/LA300/Biomycin is the only thing I knew to work on foot rot.

Some percentage will get better if you inject them with water...
Question is why send so much for the latest meds?

 

[elkwc]

I am surprised that you guys are having success with an antibiotic like Draxxin. LA200/LA300/Biomycin is the only thing I knew to work on foot rot.

Some percentage will get better if you inject them with water...
Question is why send so much for the latest meds?

Steve with us it isn't because it is the latest medicine. It is because it seems to work consistently. We need something we can rely on that works most if not all of the time. LA200/300 doesn't work on most around here with one treatment. Nuflor does and Draxxin has all but once. We also keep Draxxin on hand for other illnesses so it saves having a fridge full of medicine.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Are you sure your not fighting ergot ? As it will cause lameness as well.

If you are talking to me I'm pretty sure. For several reasons. First they have the smell. I have took a tie rope and worked it between their toes. Also the year it was so bad after about 3 we took one to the vet and he verified it. I also wanted to get his input on treatment. Which was basically the same as we had been doing. Either Nuflor or Draxxin and turn out in a pasture with no ponds they could stand in or a good dry lot. Then later took another one and both times the vet verified it. So no doubt about them. Both vets say that the bacteria can live in the soil for a while so once you get it in a pasture you are more likely to have reoccurences in that pasture.

Spray their feet down with a 10% chlorox solution out of a pump up sprayer it will help.

 

[elkwc]

Are you sure your not fighting ergot ? As it will cause lameness as well.

If you are talking to me I'm pretty sure. For several reasons. First they have the smell. I have took a tie rope and worked it between their toes. Also the year it was so bad after about 3 we took one to the vet and he verified it. I also wanted to get his input on treatment. Which was basically the same as we had been doing. Either Nuflor or Draxxin and turn out in a pasture with no ponds they could stand in or a good dry lot. Then later took another one and both times the vet verified it. So no doubt about them. Both vets say that the bacteria can live in the soil for a while so once you get it in a pasture you are more likely to have reoccurences in that pasture.

Spray their feet down with a 10% chlorox solution out of a pump up sprayer it will help.

It will help, putting them where there is no mud to stand in helps as much but in some cases we have found they only get worse unless we treat them.

 

[TexasBred]

CB nothing seems to work consistently. Use to spray dairy cattle feed with chlorox, then we switched to using a solution heavy in copper sulfate. Put in a foot bath and had them walking through formaldehyde. Had hoof trimmer come out monthly and work on foot rot. Nothing got rid of it completely and it's just as bad in the heat of summer as the cold mess of winter.

 

[jkwilson]

Are you sure your not fighting ergot ? As it will cause lameness as well.

One shot of antibiotic is giving significant improvement, so I doubt it. I always check hooves at least on the first treatment because I had one get a twig stuck in the soft tissue like a giant splinter several years ago.

 

[midTN_Brangusman]

Nuflor has worked great for foot rot for us. I also mix salt with my mineral and it seems to help.

 

[5S Cattle]

What kind of cattle are y'all having foot rot problems with? I've only seen it in my Herefords. My Brahmans haven't had a problem with it. I started mixing iodine with my salt/mineral after the 3rd case of it this year and haven't had a problem since though. Using this

 

[Stocker Steve]

What kind of cattle are y'all having foot rot problems with? I've only seen it in my Herefords.

Augus bulls. Seems to be an occupational hazard.

 

[elkwc]

Angus cows and heifers. Only one bull in 4 years.