Sprinklers in the Summer
Cool Cows = Productive Cows
Summer days are just ahead and there’s a few things to consider when preparing for the weather change. We believe the most important thing to focus on is your herd’s health and one way to do that this time of year is to keep your cows cool.
Cows experience heat stress when the ‘THI’ or ‘temperature humidity index’ is above 70. When cows encounter heat stress, their respiration rates increase, as their milk production, reproduction, and overall health decreases. It is estimated that heat stress causes $5 – $6 billion USD yearly in lost milk production in the U.S. alone.
While shade and fans help, a cool water system is remarkably effective, as well. The science behind this technique is evaporative cooling, where the cool moisture is evaporated by air flow. Cows soak and then evaporate the cool water, kind of like sweating, but the water is cool, being more effective.
The evaporated cooling effect works more efficiently if the cool water has time to evaporate. This gives reason to turn the sprinklers on and off. There is new technology that makes this an easy feature as they automatically sense when the cow is under the sprinkler using motion sensors. This saves up to 70% of the water that is typically used when sprinklers are running within set temperature settings. An additional benefit of this, that you might already be thinking of, is less excess water in the manure pit.
A practice we recommend is installing a sprinkler system over the feed bunk and in the holding area. Cow’s temperatures rise when they are crowded or standing close together. These are two locations where we see this happen. Some studies indicate that it takes several hours to decrease the risen core body temperature. So, the impact of heat stress is long lasting and challenging to reverse.
The intent of a sprinkler system is lightly, but effectively spraying cool water over the cow’s back while steering clear of the nearby feed and avoiding accumulation of moisture on the udder. This takes planning to ensure water can be supplied, sprinklers can be securely installed, while keeping the feed and udders dry.
So, what can you expect if you decide to invest in a cattle cooling system? Here are a few key things to plan on:
· Placement is critical to avoid getting caught by cows or equipment. You’ll also need to keep far enough away from the feed itself so you’re no getting residual water on your feed.
· You’ll want to make sure you have a decent water supply and pressure. Most systems will want filtered water and may even include the filter.
· Have the length(s) of the barn(s) ready. Google satellite view has a great feature to make this easier. This is important to ensure that you’re not putting too many nozzles on one line and not having pressure at the end of the line. Here is a link on how to do that. LINK
· Systems will need a power source to operate the controller(s) and open/close a solenoid valve.
· Determine if your feedline fans are on a separate circuit. This is helpful to allow fans to also be turned off when misting. Otherwise we can risk increasing humidity in the barn, getting overspray on the feed and otherwise wasting water.
· Estimate impact on manure storage. Some water will end up in the manure storage but as mentioned before, new technology supports decreasing water usage.
· You’ll likely need to spend time after the installation to fine tune settings.
With the provided details and speculations, if you are considering making an investment in a sprinkler system, be sure to review the benefits for your cow’s health and consider the design to ensure this will not negatively impact surrounding areas. If you have any questions or are even ready to invest, contact your local dairy resource company.