The use of infrared thermography for diagnosing limb disorders in dairy cattle.

Infrared thermography shows promise as a non-invasive, early-detection tool for hoof and limb disorders in dairy cattle.

Limb disorders represent one of the most economically and welfare-significant challenges in dairy cattle production, alongside mastitis and reproductive disorders. Traditional diagnostic approaches, including visual locomotion scoring and routine hoof trimming, suffer from inherent subjectivity, operator variability, and limited sensitivity for detecting subclinical or early-stage pathology. This review evaluates infrared thermography (IRT) as a non-invasive, objective diagnostic adjunct for identifying hoof diseases and locomotion disorders in dairy cattle under practical farm conditions. IRT operates by capturing infrared radiation emitted from body surfaces, enabling detection of thermal asymmetries and localized temperature elevations associated with inflammatory processes in the distal limbs and hooves. The technology offers several practical advantages: it is non-contact, requires no chemical restraint, produces rapid results, and can be integrated into routine herd health monitoring protocols. The authors highlight IRT's potential for early detection of conditions such as digital dermatitis, laminitis, and other hoof pathologies before overt clinical signs develop, potentially allowing earlier therapeutic intervention and reducing disease severity. Key limitations discussed include environmental interference, operator expertise requirements, and the need for standardized protocols to ensure reproducibility across farm settings. The review underscores IRT's promise as a complementary tool to existing diagnostics rather than a standalone replacement, emphasizing its role in improving early disease identification, animal welfare outcomes, and reducing economic losses associated with lameness in commercial dairy herds.

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