ANN 111: Principles of Animal Nutrition and Feed Technology (2+1)

WATER REQUIREMENT

• Water requirements for any class or species of animals depends on dietary and environmental factors
• Water consumption is related to
• Heat production
• Energy consumption
• Body surface area in non-stressing situations.
• All environmental temperature that do not result in heat stress, there is a good linear relationship between dry matter consumption and water consumption.
• Non-heat stressed non-lactating cattle may drink 5-6%body weight per day.

Water consumption may increase by 12% or more of body weight per day during heat stress.

Animal	Litres/day
Dairy cattle	38-110
Beef cattle	22-66
Sheep and goat	4-5
Horses	30-45
Swine	11 -19
Chickens	0.2-0.4
Turkey	0.4-0.6

• Animals will consume 2 to 5kg of water for every 1 kg of dry feed consumed when they are not heat stressed.
• Birds require less than mammalian species.
• Young animals generally require more water than adult per unit of body weight.