Water is key to cattle health in cold

University of Illinois Extension beef specialist Travis Meteer says ensuring cattle access to fresh water is crucial during bitter cold temperatures.

“Sometimes the water situation becomes the most challenging, and so making sure we’ve got flowing water for cattle is key.” He says, “If we’re watering out of ponds, or we’ve got automatic waterers, we’re making sure those waterers are free and cattle can have adequate consumption of water.”

He tells Brownfield water is vital to cattle nutrition, even in the cold.

“Water is the most important nutrient for cattle.” He says, “They tend to actually drink more water when the temperatures are very cold to stay hydrated.”

Meteer says several solutions, such as heated watering devices, are on the market to assist producers.