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Designing the Right Watering System for Your Cattle

Designing the Right Watering System for Your Cattle
Dr. Dirk Philipp, Assistant Professor
Water is often an overlooked and neglected factor in livestock operations, and watering systems on farms are sometimes in bad shape. While most producers ensure that pasture, hay and additional feed are of reasonable quality, some ignore the importance of clean drinking water to the herd. Drinking water quality and quantity directly influence animal health, grazing distribution and forage management. Failure to get enough water to cattle will reduce animal performance more quickly and more severely than any other deficient nutrient. A rule of thumb is to provide livestock with one gallon of water per pound of dry matter consumed. Cattle’s access to clean water increases the intake of water and dry matter simultaneously.
As a first step in designing new or improving existing watering systems, producers will need to determine animal water requirements. These will depend on various factors - livestock species, age, moisture concentration of the feed, air temperature and humidity and distance animals must travel to the water sources. The table below provides estimates of the amount of water consumed during one day. Note that as temperature increases from 50 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit, livestock water needs approximately double.
The amount of moisture present in forage or feed affects water intake as well. An animal can gain 15 gallons a day from lush pasture growth, but this opportunity is restricted to cooler days only. During hot and dry periods, forage moisture concentration is low and animals’ need to drink is increased. Other things to consider include:
Dairy breeds have higher water needs than beef breeds.
Mature cows need 3 to 5 pounds of water per pound of dry matter.
Lactating females require more water than nonlactating females.
Animals drink more water when it is readily available.
The quality of the water provided to livestock is critical to their health, and it is not ideal to let animals drink directly from surface water, including ponds and streams. Pathogens can easily contaminate surface runoff, which may also be a source of parasite infestation. Research supports the presumption that clean water has positive effects on animal performance. In a study in Alberta, Canada, scientists showed that steers provided with fresh water gained 2.6 pounds per day, whereas steers provided with pond water gained only 2.0 pounds per day. As indicated in the Animal Science E-News October issue, providing cattle with access to ponds or streams is not the best choice from the perspective of environmental stewardship. Here are some further shortcomings of providing livestock unrestricted access to surface waters:
• Water contaminated with manure may develop blue-green algae, which can poison livestock, resulting in muscle tremors, liver damage and death.
• High nitrate levels interfere with the ability of animals to absorb oxygen.
• High salinity of water may cause dehydration.
• Bacteria present in stream and pond water can cause diseases such as leptospirosis and brucellosis.
• Sheep and goats seem to be more sensitive to foul water than cattle.
• Experience from producers has shown increases in weaning weights and average daily gain for stockers when provided with clean water.
In deciding which water sources may be appropriate, producers should choose several options if possible. Power outages, adverse weather conditions or equipment breakdowns can limit operability of these systems; thus, it is important to diversify. Backup water sources help reduce expenses and reduce problems. Of course, the development of water sources must be feasible and economically manageable for each particular farm.
To start the process of getting your delivery systems into shape, make a list of potential water sources on your site. Then decide if the quality from each site is acceptable, and estimate the quantity each source can supply. You should also take into consideration that your watering source should be workable for the next five to ten years.
For water delivery from source to livestock, producers can essentially choose among pumps, gravity flow, hauling, tanks or access to surface waters. Producers need to check which supply may work best for their purposes. Again, access to surface waters without restriction is not encouraged, although there are many opportunities to alleviate negative environmental impacts.
Whether you decide to install new watering systems or to upgrade the old ones, your livestock will benefit. Stay tuned for more information regarding engineering and construction of watering systems in upcoming issues of Animal Science E-News.