July 10, 2003

 

NDSU Specialist Offers Hot Weather Management Tips

With summer temperatures rising each day, Chip Poland, livestock specialist at the Dickinson Research Extension Center, encourages producers to manage livestock carefully.

Poland offers the following tips for reducing heat induced problems in livestock:

• Ensure water resources are adequate and readily available.
• Keep handling stress to a minimum.
• Maximize access to circulating air, especially in confinement situations.
• Provide opportunities for shade.

In cattle operations, Poland notes that corral work should be completed by 10 a.m. at the latest and sooner if possible. Working at night might seem like a good idea, but excess day heat may take six or more hours to dissipate.

Poland also says that time in the working facility should be limited to 30 minutes or less. Bunching cattle and restricting air movement and water availability can lead to disaster.

Producers should be particularly concerned when there is little or no relief from high temperatures (i.e. nighttime temperatures stay above 70 F).

Cattle should be fed in the evening to reduce the heat of fermentation and digestion during hotter parts of the day. For pen-fed animals, it may be necessary to reformulate diets to reduce total caloric intake, which in turn should minimize metabolic heat production.

Poland also stresses that ranch work in the heat of summer is just as hard on producers as it is on livestock.

He advises all workers to take the following precautions:

• Minimize strenuous work during the hotter times of the day.
• Increase water consumption.
• Use a buddy system to spot signs associated with heat stress.
• If overheated, stop strenuous activity for the day, and seek inside work or rest/relaxation.

Failure to heed the signs of heat exhaustion and respond appropriately may result in the development of heat stroke in both animals and humans.

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Source: Chip Poland, (701) 483-2078, wpoland@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Writer: Teresa Oe, (701) 879-6270, teresa.oe@ndsu.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu