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Matthew Nelson, CEOMatt Nelson, CEO of Specialty Herd Solutions, identifies three customer concerns around lameness management: cost, labor and the consistency and efficacy of what the equipment brings to hoof health. Traditional processes can require employees to handle 50-pound bags of copper and containers of acid, mix solutions and return between groups of cows to empty and scrub the bath. A depleted chemical supply can also interrupt a treatment protocol.
Specialty Herd Solutions changes that model by taking ownership of the recurring process. It owns and maintains its HoofStrong equipment, manages filling and cleaning the bath and monitors chemical inventory. Its automated systems can track flow, gallons used and inventory levels while the company remains involved in keeping the program running.
“We take full responsibility for managing the foot bath and driving the hoof care and lameness outcomes the customer needs,” says Laura Pires, VP, Commercial Strategy & Innovation.
The Farm Comes Before the Equipment
The process begins before installation with a comprehensive hoof-health audit. Specialty Herd Solutions examines the facility, cow flow, existing foot bath program and farm data before determining the hoof-health challenges affecting the herd. The team considers issues such as digital dermatitis also known as hairy heel warts, white line disease, ulcers and abscesses before tailoring the program.
That assessment shapes both equipment and chemistry. The company offers formalin for digital dermatitis challenges, liquid acidified copper and zinc for non-infectious issues and hoof hardness and Unite, a proprietary blend combining all three chemicals into one. The treatment and number of days can be adjusted according to the farm’s protocol and needs.Automation, in the company’s approach, is intended to provide consistent applications which are key to strong hoof care outcomes. The systems can monitor flow, gallons used and chemical inventory, helping Specialty Herd Solutions more efficiently manage the bath.
The company also emphasizes what it calls the “proper dunk,” meaning full immersion of the cow’s hooves in the treatment solution. At Triple G Dairy, the automated hoof bath continually provides consistent liquid depth and chemical concentration, helping ensure the last cow through the bath receives the same treatment as the first. The system also communicates to the manufacturer for management, reducing the need for foot bath supervision on the farm.
Many dairies the company engages with report lameness rates in the 20 to 30 percent range. In the company’s customer experience, a dairy at 25 percent can move below 20 percent after improving the bath and implementing a tailored five-day, two-chemistry program. Nelson cites a potential cost of $300- to $350 for each lameness case, based on published industry research.
When the Customer Says, “We Don’t Even Touch It”
Caprock Dairy in Muleshoe, Texas, provides a direct example of the change in employee workload. The dairy previously relied on employees to handle chemicals and protective equipment as part of its hoof-bath process. Specialty Herd Solutions installed and maintained a customized HoofStrong automated hoof bath to ease the workload and improve employee safety. The system automatically adds the right amount of chemical and can switch between solutions for specific hoof-care programs. When solutions need to change, Specialty Herd Solutions provides on-site, OSHA-compliant chemical handling.
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Our customer is a dairy. From the Pacific to the Atlantic, we serve dairies across the country.
“We don’t even touch it,” says Cody Kirby, managing partner at Caprock Dairy. The dairy later installed a second system at another location. The change allowed the crew to focus on other aspects of the dairy while removing direct chemical contact.
From Labor Savings to Herd Outcomes
Triple G Dairy provides a different perspective through hoofhealth results. The dairy installed an automated hoof bath system in November 2023. According to the customer case study, digital dermatitis decreased soon after installation and infectious-diseaserelated lameness declined to near zero within about six months. The dairy also reported no severe lameness after installation and tracked lameness month to month.
The employee impact was tangible as well. A worker who had previously managed the foot bath could redirect that time toward other farm responsibilities, including dealing with sand buildup.
The dairy remained appropriately cautious about broader production claims. Several changes were made at the operation, making it difficult to attribute increased milk production directly to the automated system. What the customer could identify more confidently was that cows were staying in the herd longer.
Experience behind the Service
Specialty Herd Solutions has spent about 25 years in automated hoof baths. Nelson connects that experience to accumulated expertise across system design, chemistry, installation, maintenance and service. “Our customer is a dairy. From the Pacific to the Atlantic, we serve dairies across the country,” says Nelson. The company also emphasizes its national footprint and ability to deliver equipment and chemicals while remaining involved after installation.
When a dairy commits to purchasing its chemicals, Specialty Herd Solutions can provide the foot bath without an upfront equipment charge, reducing the initial cash burden.
The company is also extending the same broader philosophy into animal care through offerings such as ShieldStrong for fly control and SmartSight, an AI vision technology partnership with Nedap designed to support earlier lameness detection.
Making Consistency Someone’s Responsibility
Dairies do not need another piece of equipment simply because automation is available. They need critical animal-care protocols to happen correctly and consistently despite the pressures of daily farm operations.
Specialty Herd Solutions approaches that challenge by connecting assessment, chemistry, automated equipment, monitoring and service. The dairy still owns the importance of hoof care. What changes is how much of the recurring work required to deliver it consistently remains on the dairy’s shoulders.
Consistent Hoof Care without Manual Bath Management
Lameness can turn a routine hoof-bath task into a production and labor problem when the bath is mixed late, refreshed inconsistently, run too shallow or allowed to drift from its intended concentration. Traditional programs can also pull staff away from cow care while asking them to lift heavy product bags and work around concentrated chemicals. For large herds, the weak point is often not access to treatment chemistry. It is repeatable execution across every group of cows.
Labor exposure matters because bath management is a recurring task, not a one-time setup. Manual programs can require staff to move product, mix solution, clean the bath and dispose of spent liquid. This burden competes with other work, especially when a traditional bath may need attention after roughly 150 to 350 cows. An automated system earns its place only if it reduces routine handling while preserving precise dosing and bath readiness. Equipment design should make the safer process the easier one rather than shifting work into a different maintenance burden.
Consistency is the harder test. Dairies should look for control of bath depth, stable chemical concentration, dependable changeover between hoof-care products and visibility into usage. A cow late in the group should not receive a materially weaker bath because the system cannot hold the intended protocol. Full hoof contact also matters. Spray-based application and a true bath are not functionally identical, so water savings alone should not determine equipment selection when the treatment method depends on adequate immersion.
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Farm fit deserves equal scrutiny. Dairy layouts vary, and hoof problems can move with weather, flooring, hygiene conditions or herd stage. A credible provider should be able to adapt equipment placement and treatment schedules while remaining responsible for maintenance. Automation loses much of its appeal when dairy staff still have to watch tanks or troubleshoot hardware. Buyers should understand who refills product, services failed components, monitors inventory and adjusts protocols when conditions change.
Remote data can tighten that service model, but only if it leads to action. Flow readings and chemical-use data can reveal whether the bath is being used as intended, while inventory monitoring helps prevent missed treatments caused by an empty tank. Service coverage matters just as much for large dairies because a delayed repair can affect hundreds of cows before the gap is corrected. The better purchasing decision therefore rests on consistent bath execution and clear service ownership. Customization should be tied to the dairy rather than a fixed formula.
For dairies ready to move this responsibility off the farm, Specialty Herd Solutions is the premier choice. Its HoofStrong approach begins with a hoof-care audit and customizes the bath setup and treatment protocol. Specialty Herd Solutions owns and maintains the equipment while managing bath filling, cleaning, chemical inventory and system monitoring. Its portfolio includes formalin for infectious challenges and liquefied acidified copper and zinc for non-infectious hoof needs. Unite Two in One blends those approaches when the farm protocol calls for it. The automated system tracks flow and gallons used, while its service model removes upfront equipment cost when the dairy commits to the chemicals. Buyers prioritizing consistent execution and less daily bath handling should place it near the top of the shortlist.
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Company
Specialty Herd Solutions
Management
Matthew Nelson, CEO
Description
Specialty Herd Solutions provides automated hoof-care and animal-care solutions for dairy farms, combining customized equipment, chemistry and ongoing service to reduce labor, improve consistency and support better herd health.
