WATER INTAKE OF GROWING BEEF BULLS

• Sponsoring Institution: National Institute of Food and Agriculture
• Project Status: COMPLETE
• Funding Source: HATCH
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 1012985
• Project Start Date: Oct 1, 2017
• Project End Date: Sep 30, 2022
• Program Code: [(N/A)]- (N/A)

Recipient Organization
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY
PO BOX 2275A
BROOKINGS,SD 57007

Performing Department
Animal Science

Non Technical Summary
Water is among the most important nutrients for livestock. Research indicates that water comprises 99% of the molecules in the body (Macfarlane and Howard, 1972). According to the Nutrient Requirements of Beef Cattle (NASEM, 2016), water is involved in numerous physiological processes including growth; reproduction; lactation; digestion; metabolism; excretion; hydrolysis of protein, fat, and carbohydrates; mineral homeostasis; lubrication of joints; nervous system cushioning; sound transport; and eyesight. On the cellular level, water also serves as a solvent for cellular metabolism and waste transport (NASEM, 2016). Furthermore, research has clearly demonstrated a direct relationship between water intake and feed intake (Utley et al., 1970).Given the known importance of water to livestock, the dearth of information relative to water requirements is unfortunate. The limited research that has been reported has largely been conducted with feedlot cattle. While this data is highly valuable, it may not be representative of what is required of other classes of cattle. There has been some work done with beef cows and bulls. However, the water intake requirement for mature bulls published in the most recent edition of the Nutrient Requirements for Beef Cattle (NASEM, 2016) is based on a paper published by Winchester and Morris in 1956. That work identifies the requirement for bulls weighing 636 kg and 727 kg. While this work was likely very accurate for cattle of that time period, the phenotype of cattle produced today is vastly different. The weights reported by Winchester and Morris (1956) for mature bulls would be very representative of yearling bulls today. As such, a re-evaluation of the water intake requirements of beef bulls would provide valuable information to beef producers, nutritionists, and facility planners.Research conducted to date has demonstrated the effects of mean ambient temperature, previous day temperature, minimum temperature, temperature-humidity index, humidity, sea level pressure, and average wind speed as environmental factors that affect water consumption in beef cattle (Arias and Mader, 2011; Sexson et al., 2012). Furthermore, animal body weight has been shown to be negatively correlated and dry matter intake to be positively correlated with water consumption (Sexson et al., 2012). However, it is important to note that this work was done with feedlot cattle in confinement. Evaluation of the effect of these factors on water intake in growing bulls has not been done.To address these questions, 30 to 40 bulls in each of three years will be fed a similar diet (13-14% crude protein and 1.10 to 1.15 Mcal net energy of gain per kg diet dry matter) for approximately 100 days. During the feeding period, individual feed and water intake will be monitored using the Insentec RIC system. At the conclusion of the three years of data collection, data will be pooled for analysis. Water intake will be regressed on weather data obtained using the MESONET system, animal body weight, and dry matter intake to determine which factors have the greatest impact on water intake. Results will be reported in abstract form at a regional or national meeting of the American Society of Animal Science, published in a peer-reviewed journal, and disseminated using the iGrow web portal of South Dakota State University Extension. Ultimately, the impact of this research will be to provide beef producers and nutritionists with valuable information relative to the water requirements of their cattle. They can then use that information to more accurately meet the needs of the animal to optimize growth and development of their bull calves. Furthermore, data generated in this experiment will be available for incorporation into system-wide water usage analyses of beef production systems.

Animal Health Component

100%

Research Effort Categories

Basic

0%

Applied

100%

Developmental

0%

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
307	3310	1010	100%

Knowledge Area
307 - Animal Management Systems;

Subject Of Investigation
3310 - Beef cattle, live animal;

Field Of Science
1010 - Nutrition and metabolism;

Keywords

bull

catlle

water

intake

weather

insentec

Goals / Objectives
Determine the effects of weather, body weight, and dry matter intake on the water consumption of growing beef bulls.

Project Methods
This project is designed to facilitate data collection for a 4-year period then allow 1 year for data analysis and publication. In years 1-4 approximately 30 to 40 growing Angus and Angus x Simmental bulls will be used to determine the effect of weather, body weight, and dry matter intake on water consumption. The bulls will be sourced from the South Dakota State University Cow-Calf Education and Research Facility herd. Bulls produced by this herd are used for teaching purposes and approximately 30 are sold each year in a public auction. From one year to the next, the quality of the bulls may vary and result in variability in the number of bulls selected for development and the relative percentage of Angus and Angus x Simmental bulls.Bulls will be weaned from their dams in late September or early October using a fenceline weaning procedure. They will receive all vaccinations and anthilmentics recommended by a consulting veterinarian. The bulls will remain in the pasture for 2 to 4 weeks depending on feed availability. During that time, they will be provided a supplement pellet comprised primarily of soybean hulls and dried distillers grains plus solubles. The pellet will also be fortified with minerals and vitamins to meet the requirements published in the Nutrient Requirements of Beef Cattle (NASEM, 2016).After the weaning period, the bulls will be transferred to a partially-enclosed building equipped with Insentec RIC feed and water units. Each bull will be administered a half-duplex radio frequency identification tag with a unique ISO code. This code will be recorded and entered into the Insentec RIC system to facilitate feed and water intake data collection. Over a period of 2 weeks the bulls will be adapted to use of the feed and water units. Their diet may vary somewhat from one year to the next depending of feed availability and price; however, it will generally be based on corn silage and contain 13% to 14% crude protein and 1.10 to 1.15 Mcal net energy for gain per kg of diet dry matter. Daily feed offerings will be adjusted to approximate ad libitum intake. Feed refusals will be removed as necessary.The experimental feeding/watering period for each group of bulls will begin in November and will continue until the annual bull sale in April of the following year. This will allow for a feeding period of no less than 120 days. Recently published research (Ahlberg et al., 2018) suggests that a minimum of 35 days is required to determine water intake in beef cattle. Body weights will be collected at the start of the feeding period and then monthly thereafter. Feed intake and water intake will be recorded automatically by the Insentec RIC system. Reports will be checked daily to identify animals that are not consuming expected amounts of feed and/or water. If animals are so identified, the feed and water units will be checked for proper function. If they are functioning properly and the animals appear in good health, then their electronic identification tags will be replaced. Samples of each feed ingredient will be collected weekly. At the conclusion of the feeding period, the feed samples will be dried and ground. Dry matter will be calculated for each weekly sample. Composites of weekly samples will be analyzed for crude protein, acid detergent fiber, neutral detergent fiber, ether extract, and ash. Water samples will be collected weekly and a composite will be analyzed for livestock suitability at the conclusion of the feeding period. Water samples will also be weighed to allow for accurate conversion of kg water intake to L of water intake. At the conclusion of the feeding period, feed and water intake data will be downloaded from the Insentec RIC system and stored until the third year is complete. Once the three years of data collection have been completed, weather data will be retrieved from the MESONET system station located approximately 4 km from the feeding location. Data will be analyzed by regressing water intake on weather factors, body weight, and feed intake data. Results will be reported in abstract form at either the Midwest Section annual meeting or national annual meeting of the American Society of Animal Science. Furthermore, a manuscript will be prepared for publication in the Journal of Animal Science, Translational Animal Science, or Professional Animal Scientist.

Progress 10/01/19 to 09/30/20

Outputs
Target Audience:The ultimate target audience for this project is beef producers that raise bulls. However, in order to reach that audience effectively, other audiences must be engaged. Extension personnel will be the first target audience to help facilitate the direct dissemination process to beef producers. Industry consultants, nutritionists, and veterinarians will also be targeted because of their direct impact on the best management practices utilized by beef producers. Each of these audiences will be reached using a combination of dissemination strategies including peer-reviewed journal articles, Extension publications, professional meetings, continuing educational opportunities, and popular press. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Zachary McDaniel, an MS student in ruminant nutrition, participated in this project and learned about feed bunk management, feed mixing, feed delivery, and use of the Insentec RIC system. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?During the 2020-2021 reporting period the 4th year of data collection will be completed. Bull weight, water intake, feed intake, and weather data will be collected on the fourth cohort of 36 Angus and SimAngus bulls.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1: Determine the effects of weather, body weight, and dry matter intake on the water consumption of growing beef bulls. (40% Accomplished) During the reporting period the second year of feed and water intake data were collected. Angus (n=13) and SimAngus (n=15) bulls (average starting body weight = 287.9 ± 33.1 kg) were housed in a partially covered pen and fed a common diet consisting of corn silage, high-moisture corn, alfalfa hay, soybean meal, and dried distillers grains plus solubles. The composition of this diet was 51.4% dry matter; 14% crude protein; and 1.15 Mcal NEg/kg DM. Feed was offered twice daily to approximate ad libitum intake. Any feed refusals were discarded. Feed and water disappearance were measured using the Insentec RIC system. Data were checked for errors and summarized for each animal. We did not have a student interested in summarizing the data for this reporting period. As such, the data were recorded and stored for future use. After collection of the year 4 data, the data will be analyzed as a complete 4-year project, reported at either the Midwest Section or National American Society of Animal Science annual meeting, and published in a peer-reviewed journal.

Publications

Progress 10/01/18 to 09/30/19

Outputs
Target Audience:The ultimate target audience for this project is beef producers that raise bulls. However, in order to reach that audience effectively, other audiences must be engaged. Extension personnel will be the first target audience to help facilitate the direct dissemination process to beef producers. Industry consultants, nutritionists, and veterinarians will also be targeted because of their direct impact on the best management practices utilized by beef producers. Each of these audiences will be reached using a combination of dissemination strategies including peer-reviewed journal articles, Extension publications, professional meetings, continuing educational opportunities, and popular press. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Dorothea Clark, an undergraduate student majoring in animal science, participated in this project and learned about experimental design, conducting an experiment that involved livestock, collecting and analyzing data, and development of an oral presentation and poster to report data. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Presentations were provided to the scientific community through three conferences What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?During the 2019-2020 reporting period the 3rd year of data collection will be completed. Bull weight, water intake, feed intake, and weather data will be collected on the third cohort of 33 Angus and SimAngus bulls.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1: Determine the effects of weather, body weight, and dry matter intake on the water consumption of growing beef bulls. (40% Accomplished) During the reporting period the second year of feed and water intake data were collected. Angus (n=16) and SimAngus (n=17) bulls (average starting body weight = 306.5 ± 30.6 kg) were housed in a partially covered pen and fed a common diet consisting of corn silage, high-moisture corn, alfalfa hay, soybean meal, and dried distillers grains plus solubles. The composition of this diet was 52.2% dry matter; 14% crude protein; and 1.12 Mcal NEg/kg DM. Feed was offered twice daily to approximate ad libitum intake. Any feed refusals were discarded. Feed and water disappearance were measured using the Insentec RIC system. Data were checked for errors and summarized for each animal. We did not have a student interested in summarizing the data for this reporting period. As such, the data were recorded and stored for future use. After collection of the year 4 data, the data will be analyzed as a complete 4-year project, reported at either the Midwest Section or National American Society of Animal Science annual meeting, and published in a peer-reviewed journal.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Clark, D., C. Wright, and M. Gonda. 2019. Effects of average temperature, wind speed, and solar radiation on daily water intake of beef bulls in winter and early spring in Eastern South Dakota. Journal of Animal Science 97(supplement 2):155.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Clark, D. J., M. G. Gonda, and C. L. Wright. 2019. Effects of average temperature, wind speed, and solar radiation on daily water intake in beef bulls in winter and early spring in eastern South Dakota. South Dakota State University Gamma Sigma Delta Undergraduate Poster Competition. 4/18/2019. Brookings, SD.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Clark, D. J., M. G. Gonda, and C. L. Wright. 2019. Effects of average temperature, wind speed, and solar radiation on daily water intake in beef bulls in winter and early spring in eastern South Dakota. South Dakota State University Undergraduate Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity Day. 4/9/2019. Brookings, SD.

Progress 10/01/17 to 09/30/18

Outputs
Target Audience:The ultimate target audience for this project is beef producers that raise bulls. However, in order to reach that audience effectively, other audiences must be engaged. Extension personnel will be the first target audience to help facilitate the direct dissemination process to beef producers. Industry consultants, nutritionists, and veterinarians will also be targeted because of their direct impact on the best management practices utilized by beef producers. Each of these audiences will be reached using a combination of dissemination strategies including peer-reviewed journal articles, Extension publications, professional meetings, continuing educational opportunities, and popular press. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Dorothea Clark, an undergraduate student who is majoring in animal science, participated in this project and learned about experimental design, conducting an experiment that involved livestock, collecting and analyzing data, and developing a presentation that will be given in the next reporting period. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 1: Determine the effects of weather, body weight, and dry matter intake on the water consumption of growing beef bulls. During the 2018-2019 reporting period, the second year of data collection will be completed. Bull weight, water intake, feed intake, and weather data will be collected on the second cohort of 30 Angus and SimAngus bulls.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1: Determine the effects of weather, body weight, and dry matter intake on the water consumption of growing beef bulls. (20% Accomplished) During the period from 12/22/17 to 4/5/18, Angus (n=21) and SimAngus (n=15) bulls (average starting body weight = 369.5 ± 81.8 kg) were housed in a partially covered pen and fed a common diet consisting of corn silage, high-moisture corn, alfalfa hay, soybean meal, and dried distillers grains plus solubles. The composition of this diet was 51.97% dry matter; 14% crude protein; and 1.08 Mcal NEg/kg DM. Feed was offered twice daily to approximate ad libitum intake. Any feed refusals were discarded. Feed and water disappearance were measured using the Insentec RIC system. Body weights were collected prior to feeding on 12/13/17, 12/14/17, 1/23/18, 2/20/18, and 4/2/18 and were used to calculate average daily gain for each period. Average daily gain was then used to predict body weights on each day of the trial. Weather data (average temperature, wind speed, and solar radiation) were obtained from a MESONET station located 3.9 km from the feeding site. Effects of average temperature, wind speed, and solar radiation on daily water intake were analyzed with a linear model using R software where the dependent variable was daily water intake and independent variables were average temperature, average wind speed, solar radiation, and average daily feed intake as a percentage of predicted body weight. In the model above, water and feed intake were summed for all 36 bulls each day; thus, our model estimated effects on total water intake of all 36 bulls. Water intake was calculated and analyzed in kg because the Insentec RIC system records water disappearance by weight rather than volume. Drinking water intake averaged 17.8 ± 7.05 kg/d and total water intake (including the diet) averaged 28.9 ± 10.1 kg/d. Increased average temperature and greater solar radiation were associated with greater water intake (P < 0.001 and P = 0.032, respectively). Increased wind speed was associated with lower water intake (P = 0.009). These data will be reported in abstract form at the 2019 American Society of Animal Science - Midwest Section Annual Meeting.

Publications