Hands-On, On-Farm Workshop to Focus on Preventing, Treating Lameness

PDP to host one-day event June 20 at Maier Farms, LLC

Lameness can cause a ripple effect of health and safety issues across a dairy farm. The 2024 Hoof Management Workshop presented by Professional Dairy Producers® (PDP) will give hoof trimmers, herdspersons, nutritionists, veterinarians and others a deep dive into the prevention strategies, handling skills and treatment options that result in optimal hoof health on dairy farms of all sizes.

The one-day workshop will be held at Maier Farms LLC, 7085 Schumacher Rd., Waunakee Wis., Thursday, June 20. Registration begins at 9:30 a.m. with the program concluding at 3:30 p.m. each day. Simultaneous Spanish translation will be provided for the entire workshop.

“Lameness is one of those challenges that affect just about every aspect of herd management,” said Cassandra Strupp, program manager with PDP. “Reproduction, production, animal wellbeing, cow throughput in the parlor and safety of team members are all impacted. The breakout sessions will sort attendees in three smaller groups for a close-up look at three very different components of hoof health, and discussions afterward with the whole group will allow for even more idea sharing.”

The on-farm location provides a living case study for participants to explore the key factors that help ensure the longevity and productivity of dairy cows. The program will include a general session for all attendees to practice stockmanship skills and put theory into practical application while implementing handling skills in pens with dairy cattle.

Attendees will break into smaller groups to attend three repeating sessions focused on the technical essentials of the footbath, identifying treatment options for chronically lame cows, and discussing practices that create continuous improvements in hoof health to reduce the strain lameness places on cows and team members.

Workshop presenters include:

• Karl Burgi, founder of the Save Cows^® Network, hoof care provider and hoof care consultant
• Ashlynn Kirk, program manager for the Humane Handling Institute, University of Wisconsin-River Falls
• Dr. Laura Solano, DVM, PhD, assistant professor, Food Animal Production, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine

This program is accredited for up to 4 Dairy AdvanCE continuing education credits and up to 4 ARPAS continuing education credits.

Learn more about the 2024 PDP Dairy Wellbeing Workshop, including speaker information and available continuing-education units, and register your team today by visiting www.pdpw.org or calling 800-947-7379. Follow along digitally in advance of and during the event by following @dairyPDPW and using #mypdpw on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

Professional Dairy Producers (PDP) is the nation’s largest dairy producer-led organization of its kind, focusing on producer professionalism, stakeholder engagement and unified outreach to share ideas, solutions, resources and experiences that help dairy producers succeed.