Hostname: page-component-76fb5796d-9pm4c Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-26T01:22:07.464Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The performance of dairy cows offered drinking water of low or high salinity in a hot arid climate

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2010

A. M. Bahman ,
J. A. Rooket  and
J. H. Topps
A. M. Bahman
Affiliation:
Public Authority for Agriculture and Fisheries, PO Box 21422, Safat, Kuwait
J. A. Rooket
Affiliation:
Public Authority for Agriculture and Fisheries, PO Box 21422, Safat, Kuwait
J. H. Topps*
Affiliation:
Public Authority for Agriculture and Fisheries, PO Box 21422, Safat, Kuwait
*
‡Department of Animal Science, University of Zimbabwe, PO Box MP167, Harare, Zimbabwe.
Get access

Abstract

Brackish well water (BW) containing 3574 mg total dissolved solids (TDS) per I was compared with desalinated water (FW, 449 mg TDS per I) as a source of drinking water for dairy cows in the hot arid conditions of Kuwait. Friesian-Holstein cows in early lactation were given daily, 12 kg cereal-based concentrate, 12 kg fresh lucerne and 4 kg senescent date palm leaves for 196 days with the experimental treatments being either BW or FW (four cows per water type). Dry matter and water intakes were not affected by water type (P > 0·05). Cows offered BW gained slightly more weight (P > 0·05) than cows consuming FW. Although overall milk yield and composition was unaffected by water type, the decline in milk yield as the experiment progressed was significantly (P < 0·05) less for cows offered BW. Cows offered BW tended to have higher concentrations of minerals and thyroid hormones in plasma than cows offered FW. It can be concluded that water containing 3574 mg TDS per I was an acceptable source of water for dairy cows.

Keywords

dairy cowsKuwaitsalinitywater intake
Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Production , Volume 57 , Issue 1 , August 1993 , pp. 23 - 28
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 1993

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Addison, J. M. 1968. Harmful levels of magnesium salts are not uncommon. Victorian Journal of Agriculture 66:468–469.Google Scholar
Agricultural and Food Research Council. 1991. Technical Committee on Responses to Nutrients, report no. 6, a reappraisal of the calcium and phosphorus requirements of sheep and cattle. Nutrition Abstracts and Reviews, series B: Livestock Feeds and Feeding 61:573–612.Google Scholar
Agricultural Research Council. 1980. Nutrient requirements of ruminant livestock. Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux, Slough.Google Scholar
Alexander, R. H. 1969. The establishment of a laboratory procedure for thein vitro determination of digestibility. Research bulletin, West of Scotland College of Agriculture, no. 42.Google Scholar
Association of Official Analytical Chemists. 1980. Official methods of analysis of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists. 13th ed. (ed. Horwitz, W.). Association of Official Analytical Chemists, Washington.Google Scholar
Bahman, A. M. 1991. Comparisons of date palm leaves with barley straw, and brackish water with fresh water for dairy cows given a high concentrate diet in Kuwait. Ph.D. Thesis, University of Aberdeen.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Challis, D. J., Zeinstra, J. S. and Anderson, M. J. 1987. Some effects of water quality on the performance of high yielding cows in an arid climate. Veterinary Record 120: 12–15.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Genstat 5 Committee. 1987. Genstat 5 reference manual. Clarendon Press, Oxford.Google Scholar
Kurihara, M., Shibata, M. and Mukai, A. 1984. The effect of environmental temperature on water economy of dry and lactating Holstein cows given high concentrate ration. Japanese Journal of Livestock Management 20: 61–67.Google Scholar
Miller, J. K., Ramsey, N. and Madsen, F. C. 1988. The trace elements. In The ruminant animal. Digestive physiology and nutrition (ed. Church, D. C.), pp. 357–362. Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.Google Scholar
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. 1990. UK tables of nutritive value and chemical composition of feedingstuffs (ed. Givens, D. I. and Moss, A. R.). Rowett Research Services Ltd, Aberdeen.Google Scholar
Murphy, M. R., Davis, C. L. and McCoy, G. C. 1983. Factors affecting water consumption by Holstein cows in early lactation. Journal of Dairy Science 66: 35–38.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
National Research Council. 1989. Nutrient requirements of dairy cattle. 6th ed. National Academy Press, Washington.Google Scholar
Pandey, H. N., Nivarkar, A. E., Jana, D. N., Joshi, H. C. and Nawtiyal, L. P. 1989. Drinking water requirement of lactating cross bred cows during summer under free choice feeding system. Indian Journal of Animal Production and Management 5: 61–66.Google Scholar
Saul, G. R. and Flinn, P. C. 1985. Effects of saline drinking water on growth and water and feed intake of weaner heifers. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture 25: 734–738.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shalit, U., Maltz, E., Silanikove, N. and Berman, A. 1991. Water, sodium, potassium and chlorine metabolism of dairy cows at the onset of lactation in hot weather. Journal of Dairy Science 74:1874–1883.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Squires, V. R. 1988. Water and its functions, regulation and comparative use by ruminant livestock. In The ruminant animal. Digestive physiology and nutrition (ed. Church, D. C.), pp. 217–226. Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.Google Scholar
Topps, J. H. and Thompson, J. K. 1984. Blood characteristics and the nutrition of ruminants. Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London.Google Scholar
Van Soest, P. J. 1963. Use of detergent in the analysis of fibrous feeds. II. A rapid method for determination of fiber and Iignin. Journal of the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists 46:829–835.Google Scholar
Wegner, T. N. and Schuh, J. P. 1988. Effect of water quality and season on milk production and water metabolism in Holstein cows. Journal of Dairy Science 71:suppl. 1, p. 185 (abstr.).Google Scholar
Willis, J. B. 1960. The determination of metals in blood serum by atomic absorption spectroscopy. Spectrochimica Ada 16:259–278.CrossRefGoogle Scholar