The recent heavy falls of snow in parts of the country and subsequent hard frost has caused a great deal of hardship on farms and one of the most common difficulties is frozen water pipes going to livestock drinkers.
Farmers have many different strategies for thawing pipes including space heaters, kettles and many others, but in some cases, pipes will simply not thaw until temperatures increase again.
In many cases, pipes freeze at the entrance to the shed or inside the shed at the point of supply to the troughs. This is often the best place to start when trying to rectify frozen pipes.
If water flow cannot be restored, then barrels or an alternative water source will have to be used. Farmers should locate the nearest point where water is available and take it from there.
Where temporary-use pipes are being used, these should be fully drained every evening to ensure they too don’t freeze, and the water remains available at the access point.
If cattle have been without water for a period of time, farmers should be careful when reintroducing it so that animals don’t over-gorge.
According to Teagasc, livestock will survive for a period of time without food, but animals will show signs of dehydration if left longer than 24 hours without water.
The most vulnerable groups of animals to water shortage are milking cows, animals on high-concentrate diets and animals fed hay, straw or other very dry feeds.
Feeding cattle with frozen water pipes and drinkers
Finishing animals on high levels of dry feed such as high-concentrate diets have a big demand for water.
These animals should always have free access to water. An animal consuming 10kg dry matter (DM) of dry feed will need 60L (13 gallons) of water daily, according to Teagasc.
Where an adequate water supply cannot be provided due to frozen pipes, concentrate feeding levels should be reduced and animals should be put on wet silage (where available) fed to appetite.
These animals need to be introduced to meals gradually again once water supply is restored.
When conditions become milder and water is restored, farmers should take time to check their water infrastructure for burst pipes and drinkers.