by Joanna Hay

Created on: June 26, 2009   Last Updated: June 27, 2009

Foot rot is a common problem for hogs raised in our current confinement systems. Between twenty and sixty percent of pigs in any given barn will be affected with the disease, with various amounts of lameness observed. If younger pigs are affected they will not be able to grow as well because they will struggle against the stronger pigs for their share of food and space. Breeding pigs are also affected. Boars with foot rot often do not breed well due to the pain of standing on an infected foot while mounting a sow, and sows will be poor mothers due to poor body condition because they also must compete for food while pregnant. All these effects add up to severe economic losses for hog producers.

Before hoof rot can be understood, it is important to understand hoof anatomy. A pig's foot is equivalent to a human walking on their tiptoes. Instead of five toes, their foot splits into two 'claws' and they walk on what would be the last joint of a human's toe. Each claw is encased in a hardened outer shell known as the hoof wall. The wall is attached to the underlying structures much like a human fingernail and helps to evenly distribute the animal's weight. The last two bones of the toe are within the rigid confines of the hoof wall. There is no muscle actually in the hoof but a band of strong fibrous tissue called tendon runs from the muscles in the leg to the bones in the foot. On the very bottom of the foot is a softer layer of hoof wall called the sole. This layer is thick enough to provide support, but springy enough to disperse the force of walking.

Foot rot is literally defined as a bacterial infection of the soft tissue of the hoof. This means bacteria get past the hoof wall and attack the connective tissue between the wall and the bones of the foot. The infection can get into the joint between the two bones in the hoof and also travel up the tendon to higher parts of the leg. Before hoof rot can begin, a break in the integrity of the hoof wall must occur to allow the bacteria entry into the soft tissues. Cracks in the hoof wall can occur from sharp objects near the floor (like water spouts, gates, and feed troughs), slatted floors that allow one claw to be trapped and bent, or abrasive flooring such as wet concrete. Pigs that are kept in confinement crates have minimal exercise, so their claws may grow at an uneven rate and be predisposed to cracks.

Once the outer protection of the hoof wall is breached, any bacteria that are in the environment may invade

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