The ideal condition would be to have no space between the side wall and the ground in the crowding facility. Equipment should be inspected every day before it is used. Loose metal can cause mechanical injuries to dozens of animals before it is detected. Mechanical injuries should not be left to heal on their own. A minor injury can become a severe local infection which can cause loss of animal performance.
Mechanical injuries vary widely, as does appropriate management.
Your veterinarian can recommend appropriate treatments. Footrot While footrot is the most commonly diagnosed cause of lameness in feedlots, it actually accounts for less than 10 percent of the confirmed cases of lameness. The patterns of occurrence for footrot and toe abscesses are similar. Footrot is most often apparent one to two weeks after the soft tissue between the toes has sustained mechanical damage. The mechanical damage may come from dried pasture stubble or frozen mud spikes.