Where there are fire-y temperatures there should also be lots of cool, fresh water. Water, says Dr. Curt Vlietstra of Pipestone Veterinary Clinic, ought to be a beef or dairy producer’s first line of defense.
“In the summer, calves and feedlot cattle will drink at least one gallon per 100 pounds of body weight. Lactating dairy cows may drink 20 gallons or more,” notes Dr. Vlietstra. “Water is essential for regulating body temperature—even slight dehydration impairs the animal’s ability to keep its core temperature normal.”
There are several reasons Dr. Vlietstra specifies cool, fresh water for cattle. “You know cold water tastes better to you—it also tastes better to animals, so if it’s cool, they’ll drink more. Just the sound of water running or a fountain filling will entice an animal to take a big drink.”
“In addition, warm and/or stagnant water encourages algae to grow in stock tanks and dugouts. If fresh water isn’t an option, look for chemicals that can reduce algae growth while keeping water safe for drinking.”
Water also promotes digestive health. Gut-related illnesses increase in the summer, so water should be available at all times for suckling beef-calves and dairy calves. With proper water intake, young animals will feel more like eating.
After you’ve improved water intake what else can you do?
Once your animals are steadily drinking, Dr. Vlietstra recommends you turn your attention to heat abatement. “There are three basic ways to cool cattle when it’s hot: shade, air-movement, and water from sprinklers,” he explains. “If you can’t offer all three, provide as many as you can.”
For outdoor animals, providing adequate shade in proportion to stocking density is important. It does little good to provide shade for cows, then force them to pack together in order to take advantage of it. Don’t forget fly control wherever you’re providing shade and around water fountains and feed bunks, too.
Sprinklers are valuable, according to Dr. Vlietstra, “Unfortunately, too much water means trouble, so supply only the minimum needed to cool animals. If you see water running off animals, you’re overdoing it. Don’t allow feed and bedding to get wet.”
Fans will cool animals directly and increase evaporative cooling in addition to improving air quality when it’s hot and humid. “A combination of water and wind provides significantly more benefit than one or the other alone. The most effective fan in the barn is the one that blows across a wet cow,” Dr. Vlietstra adds.
The third important precaution: nutritional support
Water loss during hot weather leads to depleted electrolytes and minerals. Once your animals decrease dry-matter feed intake, you have to increase the nutrient density in feed to maintain milk production, growth, and/or immune function.
Providing adequate buffers can minimize negative gut-health impacts due to varied intakes caused by temperature fluctuations.
Overall, says Dr. Vlietstra, “Your cows and calves will tell you when they are and they will let you know which methods of heat abatement are working. Granted, fixing one problem will lead to another—animals may bunch up around a new fan or increased sprinkler time may raise barn humidity. So keep looking for ways to improve comfort.”
And remember to clean water fountains and tanks frequently. When using body temperature as a gauge of illness during the summer, remember that an animal’s body temperature will lag several hours behind the ambient temperature.
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