Prevalence and control of foot-pad dermatitis in broilers in Sweden.
1. A cross-sectional observational study was carried out to investigate spatial, temporal and management aspects of foot-pad dermatitis in Swedish broilers. The efficacy of a control programme was evaluated. 2. Flock information on producer, breed, foodstuff manufacturer, region, abattoir, date of slaughter, age at slaughter, planned and actual stocking density was recorded. A total of 6988 flocks, representing approximately 110 million broilers was examined. A total of 175 broiler producers from 15 geographical regions is represented. 3. The total foot-pad score per flock ranged from 0 to 200, with a mean of 34.7 and a standard deviation of 40.9. 4. Simple linear regression analysis showed that the mean total score on a weekly basis decreased (P < 0.001) over time, mainly because of a decrease in the prevalence of severe foot-pad lesions. 5. There was an association (P < 0.05) between slaughterhouse, foodstuff supplier and geographic region respectively and the mean total foot pad score of the flocks slaughtered.
Department of Animal Environment and Health, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Skara, Sweden. Lotta.Ekstrand@hmh.slu.se
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Ekstrand
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Carpenter
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Andersson
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Algers
D000003:Abattoirs; D000827:Animal Welfare; D000818:Animals; D002645:Chickens; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005533:Foot Dermatoses / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000662:veterinary*; D006799:Housing, Animal; D011201:Poultry Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013045:Species Specificity; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology