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Just wondering if you think it is healthy for your herd to have to lick snow all winter to get a good drink of water ? I know wildlife does it but, their systems are built for it . Thoughts .

Is this a dig at a particular cattle farmer? Of all the ones i know, not a single one of them expects their cattle to eat snow. All of them provide water by way of tanks and waterers.

We have always had water available for our cattle, but if cattle were on a diet that was mostly silage you would be looking at them eating feed that has 65% moisture, so that accounts for a large amount of moisture.  
I have seen cows come through winter without water and they had pretty good body condition, the biggest problem when there isn't enough snow, or if the snow they are eating is lacking in moisture, when snow breaks down you end up with ice pellets which is higher in moisture.

This winter in the Brandon area there isn't enough snow for livestock to live off of it. My stock is drinking a lot more water than usual because there is so little snow. I always have water available but if there is a lot of snow they do choose to eat that and drink a lot less. Just the bit of snow we had in the past week has made a difference in water consumption.

Farther west it’s very common for cows to eat snow all winter so long as there is adequate snow and it’s not too crusty. . And like don brown says if they are on silage they already get a lot of water from the feed. I sometimes feed cows 1/2 mile from the yard because there is better shelter in the trees and my cows will rather eat snow than walk Back for good clean water especially if it’s cold and windy.

MBFI was handing out this literature piece at Ag Days. Multiple studies have shown that cattle do just fine eating snow as long as there is an adequate amount. In times of lower snowfall, such as this year, water needs to be provided.  
 
http://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/livestock/production/beef/pubs/bjb05s21.pdf

Rue said "Just wondering if you think it is healthy for your herd to have to lick snow all winter to get a good drink of water ? I know wildlife does it but, their systems are built for it . Thoughts . "

What is your point?

I grew up on a farm. Dad always said water was the cheapest feed.  
 
In the early days cattle drank from a hole in the dug out or from a water trough. Dad used to make sure cattle had a chance to drink at least twice a day.  
 
When he put in watering bowls our cattle had full access to water.  
 
That said, a lot of snow was eaten but energy has to be consumed to melt snow.

wouldn't think this is a normal practice and all livestock producers I know have a water source for their animals. Horses cannot live off of snow however.

My brother bought a horse that had attitude but was a good horse, the first winter we had him he spent that winter in the feedlot, plus the next four years, nibbling at a hot barley straw ration. Now this sort of sent the vet into a tizzy, but the horse did just fine and never had any health problems, but after five years of concern, from people who didn''t own the horse, he was moved to my yard. I''m not sure how many years he spent at my yard, likely in excess of 15, in all those years he never had water once there was enough snow on the ground. There were always stories by the old timers who said if feed was short the horses were set free in the fall to forage for themselves, now some of them may have had access to water, but from what I have been told most just ate snow.  
One thing about farming and livestock is that the majority do care about their animals, but management policy on every farm is different. If an animal is in good condition when winter starts and comes out of winter in that condition, or better, then your management is working.  
Nice to see the link from the government on the cattle in Alberta under a no water management idea. Not for me but still interesting points.  
 
Edited by don brown, 2018-02-06 10:44:25

get me started on this subject , been in the cattle business for 40 years and as far as i am concerned it absolutely insane to think its a ideal situation not to have a water supply for a herd of cattle . Some of these producers that believe in this idea also bale graze out in open areas and expect cattle to feed in cold unprotected conditions . Yes its done in other provinces but there day to day temperatures don't exceed what a Manitoba winter brings . Put yourself out in a open field with feed and no water and see how well your health would stay .

Can live on snow for the winter. I've had a few that must have lived that way at previous homes because they would refuse water and go eat snow ( most annoying to me!) However-i personally do not believe in forcing them to eat snow for their water intake. My horses have never had much trouble with colic, even those who chose snow over water, but with some horses bring very prone to colic, IMO leaving them all winter with no water is increasing the colic risk. Dry hay and insufficient water is a recipe for colic. Now if the animals are ranging out, digging in the snow to find grass, obviously they will do better without water than will horses that are eating hay.

You'll never find a cattle farmer that doesn't provide water. Cattle are expensive to buy and own. Would you risk losing thousands of dollars?

Wild horses live without water in the winter. The strongest survive, which makes the herd better able to cope with stresses.

Flutterby said "Wild horses live without water in the winter. The strongest survive, which makes the herd better able to cope with stresses. "

Perhaps, but this is a very poor attitude for cattle farmers to use.

JessieJay said "Can live on snow for the winter. I've had a few that must have lived that way at previous homes because they would refuse water and go eat snow ( most annoying to me!) However-i personally do not believe in forcing them to eat snow for their water intake. My horses have never had much trouble with colic, even those who chose snow over water, but with some horses bring very prone to colic, IMO leaving them all winter with no water is increasing the colic risk. Dry hay and insufficient water is a recipe for colic. Now if the animals are ranging out, digging in the snow to find grass, obviously they will do better without water than will horses that are eating hay. "

would hate to be your horses. Cattle can survive without water but horses..well thats different.  
They need a fresh water source. That cool they can live that way but it's not right.

When I had cattle, they always had access to water in the winter. However, some chose to eat snow instead. Obviously, it wasn't bad for them. Many wild animals and birds rely on snow for their water, why can't cows do the same, providing that there is enough snow, especially if they have a choice?

Pull your head out of your butt and read what I wrote. I never said my horses don't have water. They always have water-some drink only warm water in winter. Some choose to ignore the water tub and eat snow. That can't be helped - because you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. I happen to think anyone that leaves their horses to eat snow with no water is incredibly lazy and I would even suggest they they shouldn't have horses. Same goes for cattle too. I would also suggest that anyone who cannot read for comprehension shouldn't bother posting on public forums.

Oryx never read your post at all JessieJay!!

FarmerMike said "    Flutterby said "Wild horses live without water in the winter. The strongest survive, which makes the herd better able to cope with stresses. " Perhaps, but this is a very poor attitude for cattle farmers to use. "

That wasn't my point.

JessieJay said "Pull your head out of your butt and read what I wrote. I never said my horses don't have water. They always have water-some drink only warm water in winter. Some choose to ignore the water tub and eat snow. That can't be helped - because you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. I happen to think anyone that leaves their horses to eat snow with no water is incredibly lazy and I would even suggest they they shouldn't have horses. Same goes for cattle too. I would also suggest that anyone who cannot read for comprehension shouldn't bother posting on public forums. "

I agree with you completely.

Rue said "Just wondering if you think it is healthy for your herd to have to lick snow all winter to get a good drink of water ? I know wildlife does it but, their systems are built for it . Thoughts . "

did you get the answer you were looking for?

Think it goes something like this,"the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence", but this topic sort of proves that it's only true if the neighbor is doing exactly like you are doing, otherwise they are doing it wrong. I imagine I could go to every livestock operation and complain that people aren't doing things right, but since we are still allowed to manage things like we want, and every operation has it's own ideas, hopefully things will remain that way. Like I said earlier,if you pay attention to your animals, and their body condition, and the animals are remaining in good condition, then your management plan is working.  
Sometimes it's a good idea to just pay attention to the grass on your side of the fence.

And sometimes it is good to pay attention to everything. There was once years back when i asked a friend about sime animals that struck me as being in very poor circumstances. He saw those animals.daily, i saw them only that once. I still regret not making a call to the authorities that day. Apparently everyone tgat saw those animals daily turned a blind eye to their circumstances and by the time someone decided to stick their nose in one animal was down and all but dead, another was close to being the same. Had I made that call Instead of listening to my friend who was sure they were all fine - that particular animal would not have died. Since then I no longer turn a blind eye.

As I've likely already proved by my opinionated nature, I would have spoken out, and done so in not a threatening manner, if I had not received a reason or an attitude of concern, my next stop would of likely been a municipal councillor, whose opinion might carry more weight than mine.

Most serious farmers wouldn't let that happen. That's a lot of money to be wasted. On the other hand when BSE came through farmers were putting cattle down. Also, just because you can't see a water source doesn't mean there isn't one.