Clear Benefits of Clean Water

For dairy cows, water is an essential nutrient. It has a fundamental effect on cows’ health, milk yield and saliva production. Water is essential for all of a cow’s basic physiological, and it is consumed in very high quantities by cattle.

A reliable source of fresh farm water is a necessity for farming dairy herds.  Water availability and quality are crucial for animal health and productivity. Poor quality drinking water is often a factor for limited water intake for farm animals. As the old saying goes, you can take a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink, particularly if the water is of poor quality.

Dairy cows drink 100 litres of water per day, on average. With even the slightest water problems, dairy cows can be down in milk yield by 10-20%. Since milk is 87% water, milk production is inextricably linked to water intake.

Effects of Bad Water on Dairy Cows

Bad water quality can lead to production, digestion and reproduction problems. If cows do not consume enough water, their milk yield will suffer; they will not produce saliva and other fluids to assist them in digesting feedstuffs.

It is estimated that 4.5lbs of water is required to make 1lb of milk. Therefore, a cow producing 45 litres of milk per day needs to consume about 180 litres of water per day. If she eats 50kg of her ration that contains 50% moisture, she will get 25 litres of water from that ration and will only actually drink 155 litres of water per day.

Signs of Cow Low Water Intake

Some visible signs of water intake problems include cows lapping at water, blowing bubbles in water and hovering over the water tank. Energy will decrease if not enough water is consumed.

High somatic cell count and dirty water can be related. Lowering the germ count of water is therefore important to fight high somatic cell count.

 Drinking fresh, clean water will help to

  • Eliminate waste
  • Maintain body fluids
  • Aid digestion
  • Absorb nutrients and metabolise nutrients
  • Remove excess heat

Experts in Farm Water Filtration and Purification

Our expert advice and solutions to farmers and producers cover water filtration, storage, pumps and piping. We also have a wealth of experience in diagnosing water quality, including the eradication of pollutants and biohazard removal.

“Water is the most important nutrient on your farm.”

Protecting farmers’ livelihoods means looking after livestock. Among our experience and expertise are solutions for:

Protecting livestock, Safeguarding livelihoods. GS Agri Systems are an established supplier of premium products to ensure water quality in farms.