General Clawcare

27/01/2022

The project "Clawcare" aims to actualize and improve the current approach of claw problems on Flemish dairy farms on a preventive and curative level. This should result in a reduction of the occurrence of claw problems and lameness in dairy cattle.

Claw problems are one of the most important disorders on modern dairy farms because of their economic impact and influence on animal welfare. By using innovative tools such as infrared cameras, injuries can be detected early. This is because increases in temperature can be detected in the area where an injury occurs due to increased blood flow in the inflamed tissue. This local increase in temperature is detected automatically by using a self-learning image processing algorithm. Within the project, close collaboration with dairy farms, professional hoof trimmers and veterinarians is established to ensure applicability of the developed technology in the Flemish dairy sector and to capture data under various, representative conditions. Dairy farmers involved will get the opportunity to participate in training sessions to get started with the innovative tools developed within the project.

Questions?

Contact us

Simon Cool

Coordinator, Living Lab Agrifood Technology