The multiple, scaled realities of farmed animal lameness in northern England

Objectives

This paper presents findings from in-depth qualitative research with farmers and farm advisors on lameness in sheep and cattle in the north of England. We draw on anthropological work by Annemarie Mol (2002) on the human disease atherosclerosis, to explore the multiple realities of lameness in sheep and cattle, how these are associated with the scale at which lameness is enacted by farmers, farmer advisors and farm animals, and the implications this has for the communication of messages about the management of lameness between different stakeholder groups.

Materials and methods

We utilise the findings of in-depth interviews conducted with 29 farmers from the north of England, and 21 UK-based farm advisors (e.g., veterinarians, foot trimmers, etc.). Ethical approval was obtained prior to data collection, and all participants provided either written or oral consent prior to participation. Interviews took place between September 2019 and March 2021. Initially these were conducted in-person, with later interviews conducted remotely due to Covid- 19 restrictions. All interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were coded via Nvivo software using a codebook developed by the authors and thematically analysed. The results also draw from observational fieldwork at 11 of the farms as part of a ‘farm walk’ with the interviewees, during which notes and photographic data were produced. We present the findings using a scaled framework which emerged from the ways in which interviewees described the practices of interacting with and managing lameness. This explores the foot, animal, farm and national scales. [...]