Evaluation of 14 Western Dairy Herds Using FirstStep™

There is increasing need to address lameness in the dairy industry. Lameness is one of the most costly diseases in the dairy industry and continues to gain attention among consumers. Diagnosing the predominant causes of lameness requires a systematic approach to identify the important risk factors present within each dairy. FirstStep™ is a software program designed to assess key areas of a dairy known to impact lameness and provide reports that identify areas of weakness in the lameness management program. The objective of this study was to use FirstStep™ to evaluate 14 dairies in the western US.