August 28, 2003

 

Hot Dry Weather Impacts Water Quality for Livestock, Specialist Warns

For about $4 including postage, livestock producers can test water to protect their livestock, says Karl Hoppe, a North Dakota State University Extension Service livestock specialist.

"The recent hot dry weather has evaporated water from dugout ponds, lakes and sloughs and concentrated the salts in the water. That $4 investment can help forecast the potential of water turning to poor quality and becoming a hazard to livestock," he says.

Water with more than 7,000 to 10,000 parts per million of total dissolved solids can lead to cattle death. "Cattle will drink some pretty bad water and do O.K.," Hoppe says. "But at a certain threshold of too much salt, they’ll stop drinking. And a few days or even hours without water on hot days will really stress cattle. Young cattle may recover, but older cows will be hurt the most and are most likely to die."

Hoppe says he’s received and investigated reports of poor water quality in areas of the region where water quality for livestock has not been a problem previously – at least recently. "Some of our areas have had so much moisture, that producers haven’t had to worry about this recently," he says. With recent hot and dry weather, water sources are shrinking and the concentrations of salts are rising. "Producers may want to test their water monthly to avoid costly problems," Hoppe says.

Samples can be sent to the North Dakota Department of Health, Chemistry Division, 2635 East Main Avenue, Bismarck, ND 58502 701-328-6140. A 200 ml (or 6 ounce) water sample is needed for the conductivity test to determine Total Dissolved Solids. Cost of the Conductivity test is $1.83 per sample.

Alternatives to poor water quality are to develop new water sources like a well or rural water, haul water to the cattle or move cattle to other pastures with better water sources. Alkalinity or salt content of the water is different than algae blooms or coliforms or other dangerous water borne problems. Algae and other organic matter can be treated with additives to reduce their growth. However, too much salt - as sodium chloride, magnesium oxide iron oxide, potassium chloride and numerous other dissolved minerals can't be removed unless distilled or treated with reverse osmosis. "Taking salt out of water is not impossible just impractical for most beef cattle producers," Hoppe says.

Recommendations for livestock water use based on Total Dissolved Solids.

"Water that is high in salt content may not look or smell bad. The water might be cloudier or have higher turbidity but that could be due to the organic matter - plants, algae, tannin from decomposing plants - in the water. Look for receding shorelines with alkali left on the exposed soil as a clue to high salt content. However, high salt water may not always be surrounded by obvious alkali," Hoppe says..

For more information, see NDSU Extension Service publication AS 954 Livestock and Water ( http://www.ext.nodak.edu/extpubs/ansci/livestoc/as954w.htm ) or contact Hoppe at (701) 652-2951 or karl.hoppe@ndsu.nodak.edu .

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Source: Karl Hoppe, (701) 652-2951, karl.hoppe@ndsu.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 652-2951, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu