With the heat wave pushing temperatures above 100 across the state, Texas livestock producers are reminded to maintain the water supplies and water quality their animals rely upon.

With most of the state currently experiencing drought conditions, the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, TVMDL, is encouraging cattle producers to be vigilant.

Water deprivation

To mitigate cattle losses due to water deprivation, ensure they have access to clean and plentiful water sources.

To remain healthy in hot weather, a 1,000-pound heifer may need to drink about 20 gallons daily. The lack of rain may also lead to far less forage growth. In normal years, green forage may provide some of the daily water requirements for a grazing cow. In drought years, forage becomes much drier and the amount of water available from forage will lessen.

To avoid water deprivation, ensure water is readily available to your cattle daily. Check the pumps that draw water from wells. Make sure troughs and tanks contain water. Ensure nipple waterers in barns are working properly.

Avoid holding cattle in pens that lack water sources for long periods, and do not work cattle in the heat of the day.

Ensure cattle know where to find water. Cattle are creatures of habit. If their preferred tank or trough dries up, animals may ignore other distant watering points in their pasture.

When introducing cattle to new pastures, drive the animals to the troughs or tanks. Make sure weaned calves know where to find water. Watch cattle to ensure they are drinking adequately.

Water/salt intoxication

When cattle become excessively dehydrated, sodium levels increase in all tissues, including the brain. If dehydrated cattle find water and drink too much too quickly, the liquid will rush to their brains. As pressure builds in the brains, cattle may develop instability or seizures, or may die from what is known as water/salt intoxication.

Salt intoxication does not mean the animal is getting an excessive load of salt, but rather the sodium concentration is increasing in the body because the animal is deprived of adequate water.

If cattle become dehydrated, they need to drink water immediately – but only in small amounts. If the trough is empty, put a few inches of water in the bottom.

Let all cattle drink at once to create competition for the water. Then repeat several times with 30 minutes between each watering until their thirst is satisfied. Monitor water intake and keep it gradual.

Poor water quality

Hot summer days take their toll on ponds and tanks. As water sources dwindle during a drought, water may become concentrated with salt and other inorganic materials.

Unpalatable water may cause cattle to avoid troughs or tanks, leading to deprivation and dehydration.

Test water for high concentrations of sodium, calcium, nitrates, magnesium salts and sulfates. If concentrations are high, new sources of fresh water must be provided.

Warm, stagnant water may also encourage the growth of blue-green algae, some of which are toxic. The algae often concentrate on the downwind side of a pond.

Dead rodents, birds or fish along the downwind side of a pond may indicate the presence of blue-green algae that could harm cattle. However, the first indication of blue-green algae could be one or more dead cattle.

Even during a drought, toxic weeds may thrive along the edges of a water source. Look along the shorelines of tanks and ponds for toxic weeds.

To learn more about testing options, visit TVMDL or call the College Station laboratory at 888-646-5623 and schedule a consultation with a veterinary diagnostician.

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Texas A&M AgriLife Sheep and Goat Field Day set for Aug. 19 in San Angelo

The 49th annual Texas A&M AgriLife Research Sheep and Goat Field Day will be held Aug. 19 at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in San Angelo at 7887 U.S. Highway 87 N.

The free event will start at 7:30 a.m. with on-site registration. The program will be from 8:30 a.m.-noon. and will feature Texas A&M AgriLife Research scientists and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service specialists highlighting the work done at the center, as well as the latest innovations, information and research related to sheep and goats.

“I am very excited about the field day this year as it gives us an opportunity to talk about a transitional phase we are in at the center,” said Reid Redden, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension sheep and goat specialist and center director. “I am looking forward to sharing with producers the new paths we are moving down, our high-priority research projects, our research updates, and the full scale of services we offer to the sheep and goat industry.”

AgriLife Extension’s 2022 Texas Sheep and Goat Expo will follow the field day on Aug. 19 and will run through Aug. 20 at the First Community Credit Union Spur Arena, 4722 Grape Creek Road, San Angelo. This event has a registration fee of $75 per person if made online, or $100 on the day of the event.

Field day schedule

The first portion of the field day program will involve concurrent sessions.

Concurrent sessions at 8:15 a.m. will be:

Yucca Extract for Internal Parasite Control — Jake Thorne, AgriLife Research program specialist, San Angelo.

ACE Goat Sleep Time Study — Dan Quadros, Ph.D., AgriLife Research livestock nutrition specialist, San Angelo.

External Lice Treatments in Angora Goats — Jordan Moody, doctoral student, American Goat Federation, San Angelo.

The 9:15 a.m. concurrent sessions will be:

Tour Bill Sims Wool and Mohair Research Laboratory — Dawn Brown, M.D., Bill Sims Wool Lab manager, San Angelo.

Livestock Guardian Dog, LGD, Bonding Project Update — Bill Costanzo, AgriLife Research LGD specialist, San Angelo.

Forage Variety Trial Update — Reagan Noland, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension agronomist, San Angelo.

The 10:30 a.m. session will take place in the auditorium and consist of the following topics and speakers:

Targeted Grazing Survey — John Walker, Ph.D., AgriLife Research range specialist, San Angelo.

Genomic Markers for Internal Parasite Resistance — Thorne.

Sonora Station and Grazingland Animal Nutrition Lab, GAN Lab, Update — Doug Tolleson, Ph.D., AgriLife Research range management specialist and chief scientist, Sonora.