Lameness in housed goats

Abstract

Lameness in housed dairy goats is a major cause of poor welfare but our understanding of the factors driving lameness in housed goats is much less than it is than in sheep or cattle. This article summarises the research on two key aspects: the importance of locomotion scoring as a method of detecting lame goats and categorising and defining the non-infectious hoof horn lesions seen in goats. It then sets out the areas in which more information is needed to significantly reduce the impact of lameness on the productivity and welfare of housed dairy goats.