Lameness also costs money in
bull fattening

Not only with dairy cattle, but also in bull fattening, the consequences of lameness are very quickly
noticeable directly in the wallet. If a claw disease in fattening bulls is not detected early enough, the high body weight quickly leads to severe lameness. Prevention is therefore the key to ensure animal welfare
and avoid economic losses. It is nothing new that soft-elastic flooring is preferred by the animals and has
a positive effect on health and performance.

Healthier joints and fewer tail tip necroses

As early as 2008, studies at the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institute in Celle, Germany, showed that bulls kept on rubber show less swelling at the carpal joints. The proportion of severe tail tip injuries and amputations was also lower on rubber than on concrete due to the deformability of the ground. (Zerbe F., Mayer C., Kjaer J, 2008)

Fewer claw injuries and shorter fattening period

In a study at the University of Skara, Sweden, significantly less claw damage was found on rubber (LOSPA)
(no severe injuries, less slight damage and significantly more healthy claws than on concrete). As a result, bulls on LOSPA reached their final weight about 30 days earlier than bulls kept on concrete.
(Graunke et al., 2011)

Rubber flooring in cattle fattening is increasingly demanded

In the Lower Saxony Animal Protection Guideline, soft-elastic slatted flooring for fattening bulls has been
a requirement since 2018. Bavaria is also planning an animal protection guideline based on this model.
In North Rhine-Westphalia, the retrofitting of calf and bull fattening barns is part of an animal welfare
support programme that was recently launched and will run until the end of September 2022. Individual slaughterhouses are also considering to support the retrofitting of rubber flooring on fattening farms in their catchment area.

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Lameness also costs money in bull fattening