Cow with three toes!

[cowcrazy]

This is the foot of a 4 year old brahman cow that we have.  We noticed she was moving slower than normal and found this "thing" growing out of her foot. What is it and can it be fixed?

 

[frostback]

Its a corn.
http://www.vetmed.wisc.edu/dms/fapm/fapmtools/6lame/Hooflesionscoresheet.pdf
There is a photo of one somewhere in this link.

 

[HGC]

Frostback is correct, it is a corn.  They can be very painfull and that is why she is moving slower.  We had a couple last year for the first time.  Not as big as that one, but we had a hoof trimmer out and he cut them out quite easily.

 

[DFSC]

Just curious, but is that something a vet could do?? We don't know any hoof trimmers off hand.

 

[Lucky_P]

Yes. Your vet can do it.  Whether or not they want to is another matter.
Back in the Dark Ages, when I was in vet school, they taught us what to do with them. Don't know if they still teach it at all vet schools or not.
Helps to have a tilt table, but I did a few when I was in practice, and we didn't have one - just knocked 'em down with appropriate drugs, did local nerve blocks, cut the 'corn' (digital fibropapilloma) out, and wired the toes together.

 

[cowcrazy]

Thanks for the info! I will contact my vet and see if he will be able to tackle it.

 

[cowcrazy]

After talking to my vet, he is afraid to do too much because the cow is due to calf within the next month. He also believes that they most likely will come back. So, what do I do - calf her out and ship her when the calf is old enough to wean or spend some money and have him cut the corns out and wait to see if they come back? She is only 4 years old and this will be her second calf. Can the corns be nipped off, or do you have to go all the way in and remove them?

 

[lfarms]

FAKE.

 

[cowcrazy]

FAKE??????