Implications of foot lesions on pelvic limb vasculature of dairy cattle

• Grant number: 18/21641-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: April 01, 2019
• End date: December 31, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Animal Clinics and Surgery
• Principal Investigator: Paulo Aléscio Canola
• Grantee: Adrieli Sousa Biliu
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias (FCAV). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Jaboticabal. Jaboticabal , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The objective of the present study is to evaluate the incidence of foot lesions and their repercussion over the digital vascularization of dairy cattle. To that purpose, 8 to 10 female dairy cows, weighting between 350 and 500 kg will be used. The animals will be positioned in lateral recumbency in an electric stock specially designed for cattle. Then, the hooves of both pelvic limbs will be cleansed for macroscopic evaluation, and the presence of lesions will be digitally recorded. As follows, clipping of the hair followed by antisepsis of the dorsal, medial and lateral aspects of the digits will be performed. A tourniquet will be placed at the mid-third portion of the metatarsal bones in order to administrate 20 ml of iohexol venous contrast (Ominipac®) in either the dorsal digital vein III or the plantar digital vein. Two orthogonal radiographic projections of both digits will be obtained. The association between digital lesions and the disruption of the digital vasculature will be assessed by multivariate multiple correspondence analysis and descriptive analysis of the lesion.