Services
Consultation
Randy is passionate about investigating, identifying, and helping solve hoof health issues. There are many reasons that cows become lame. Some hoof health issues are specific to individual farm procedures, while some issues may occur regardless of farm protocols. Sometimes, just having a fresh set of eyes look at the situation can help tremendously.
Consultation services include, but are not limited to:
- A review of footbath procedures
- Hoof care facility setup
- Identifying potential hoof health problem areas
- Visual facility inspection to identify the potential harm to hoof health
- Working alongside your existing hoof trimmer to add a fresh perspective to hoof trimming and treatment protocols
Randy’s unique ability to view a dairy operation from all perspectives comes from his lifelong experience working with dairy cows. From growing up on a dairy farm to performing hoof health services on various dairies, Randy has gained valuable insight into effective hoof health management.
Training
Randy offers a training program for dairy facilities that wish to employ in-house hoof care personnel. Training services are available for facilities that have an on-site hoof trimming chute. Training courses are held at the farm location and are tailored to meet your dairy’s needs. Clinics will be roughly 90 percent hands-on with complete instructions as to how and why the methods and procedures Randy practices are used.
Methods include, but are not limited to:
- Applying orthopedic blocks effectively
- Applying therapeutic wraps effectively
- Proper functional hoof trimming
- Recommendations for systemic treatment
- Safe and humane removal of damaged or diseased hoof to promote healing
The training Randy provides is simple to understand, effective, and efficient. The knowledge gained through the training will be ready to put into action immediately.
Hoof Trimming
The most important aspect of good hoof health is a proactive hoof trimming program based on a QUALITY hoof trim. A quality trim removes excess growth safely and effectively, setting up the cow for productive lactation. Especially with today’s freestall and concrete facilities, producing good, sound hooves that are properly trimmed and inspected for any issues is vital. Throughout his years of hoof trimming experience, Randy has developed a functional hoof trimming method that is highly beneficial to today’s dairy cow.
Lameness Treatment
Randy specializes in treating lame dairy cows, and he takes great care and pride in his lameness work. For a number of reasons, lame cows are a part of any dairy. His goal is to always provide an effective treatment of lameness. It is imperative to alleviate the pain and the symptoms of lameness as soon as possible so healing can occur. Under Randy’s protocols, treatment may include the application of a therapeutic wrap or orthopedic block, or corrective hoof trimming. Communication with the farm’s workers, managers, owners, veterinarians, and nutritionists is vital to finding the root cause of lameness. Detailed record keeping also allows the tracking of lameness types and chronic problems. Randy implements this comprehensive approach on a daily basis in order to treat, solve, and prevent lameness.
