Help measuring herd mobility

Last updated 09:20, Friday, 10 October 2008

POOR mobility in dairy cows is costing farmers an average of £180 per case through lost milk sales.

Costly issue: Kate Cross from DairyCo launched a new mobility score to help rid the industry of long standing confusion

DairyCo, the new levy body which replaced the MDC, has launched a mobility score that will help measure lameness in dairy herds.

It is hoped the method will be adopted as the industry standard.

Around a quarter of the national herd is lame at any one time and farmers who identify problems earlier can avoid losses.

Kate Cross, for DairyCo in the north west, said: “Through consultation with farmers, we discovered that foot health was one of the top three issues they wanted to address, and together with industry we have worked to produce a score which is easy to use and easy to understand.

“With some milk supply contracts requiring information on mobility scores, the requirement for a common scoring method has become vital to ensure clarity in application and like-for-like analysis.”

A scoring guide with action points is available on 01285 646510 or emailing publications@dairyco.org.uk.