June 22, 2010

Canadian farmers need to protect cattle from heat stress

With temperatures heating up in Canada, cattle producers need to take steps to protect their herds from heat stress, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) beef specialist advised.

The approaching high temperatures, coupled with last week's heavy rains, could cause hot, humid conditions in the next week or two. This weather could cause cattle to experience heat stress, especially if there is little wind and the cattle have not been exposed to these conditions before, said Terry Mader, beef specialist at UNL's Haskell Agricultural Laboratory near Concord.

"Cattle do not handle heat stress as well as humans," Mader said. "Sunny days with temperatures above the mid-80s can be stressful, particularly if there is no wind and humidity is above 50%."

Providing cattle with plenty of water is probably the best way to prevent heat stress, Mader said. "The cattle don't have to be thirsty, but as cattle drink water and pass it through their body, it removes a lot of heat in the process," he said.

Cattle normally take in about 5-6 gallons of water per day, but that amount can triple when temperatures rise. In an emergency, cattle can be sprayed with water to cool them down. "Once you start doing that, though, you have to keep doing it," Mader said. "By spraying them and using evaporative cooling, you limit the animals' ability to adapt to the heat. That's why this is an emergency step."

Producers should have an emergency plan for accessing water in case water supplies are low or cut off, Mader added.