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Eating Snow Advice
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<blockquote data-quote="Willow Springs" data-source="post: 614927" data-attributes="member: 9002"><p>I have wintered my cows entirely on snow the last two winters (once it became available). I did it because I was limit feeding and the cows would come back to the yard once they were out of feed and hang around. I wanted them in the field pooping; not in the yard; so I locked them out. It worked just fine. I didn't have to increase the feed they were getting, and they stayed in good condition. I started them cold turkey and they learned; no issues.</p><p></p><p>As for teaching them; I don't know. I think in our country almost every animal at some point in its life has taken in snow for water. Whether the waterer froze up or the hole froze over or they were too lazy to walk to the yard for water (I had seen my cows doing this before I ever tried snow for water). I did some reading and the local University had done a study on using snow. There wasn't a difference between watered cows and snowed cows in weight, body condition, pregnancy rates or pounds of calf weaned. The thought is that the rumen and the animal gives off a lot of waste heat anyway just in the digestion process. When the cows lick snow they do have to take in a lot (in small amounts) to meet water requirements; this snow will not get to the rumen; it will melt via the waste heat in the mouth and throat, therefore the body temperature of the animal isn't ever compromised. Now watch a big cow that walks to water once a day and tanks up very quickly on water just above freezing. Who is under more stress from a body core temp change??</p><p></p><p>One thing to remember though is that it really works best on cows being fed for maintenance. Water encourages feed intake, and without it the cattle don't eat as much. that's why snow is not reccomended for growing animals or ones that need to gain weight (ie: calves, bred heifers, old cows).</p><p></p><p>How do you know if they are getting enough water? Monitor their feed intake. If your cows are eating less than you think they should then they may not be getting enough water. We ran into that issue this fall; the weatehr was pretty cold, our snow was very dry, our hay is dryer than normal and we were feeding more straw. I thnik becasue of these factors the cows couldn't get enough water. They weren't eating enough for a few days; I let them back up for water and the next day they had really started eating again, everything they had left was eaten along with the days feed. I'll have to wait for more moist snow i guess.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Willow Springs, post: 614927, member: 9002"] I have wintered my cows entirely on snow the last two winters (once it became available). I did it because I was limit feeding and the cows would come back to the yard once they were out of feed and hang around. I wanted them in the field pooping; not in the yard; so I locked them out. It worked just fine. I didn't have to increase the feed they were getting, and they stayed in good condition. I started them cold turkey and they learned; no issues. As for teaching them; I don't know. I think in our country almost every animal at some point in its life has taken in snow for water. Whether the waterer froze up or the hole froze over or they were too lazy to walk to the yard for water (I had seen my cows doing this before I ever tried snow for water). I did some reading and the local University had done a study on using snow. There wasn't a difference between watered cows and snowed cows in weight, body condition, pregnancy rates or pounds of calf weaned. The thought is that the rumen and the animal gives off a lot of waste heat anyway just in the digestion process. When the cows lick snow they do have to take in a lot (in small amounts) to meet water requirements; this snow will not get to the rumen; it will melt via the waste heat in the mouth and throat, therefore the body temperature of the animal isn't ever compromised. Now watch a big cow that walks to water once a day and tanks up very quickly on water just above freezing. Who is under more stress from a body core temp change?? One thing to remember though is that it really works best on cows being fed for maintenance. Water encourages feed intake, and without it the cattle don't eat as much. that's why snow is not reccomended for growing animals or ones that need to gain weight (ie: calves, bred heifers, old cows). How do you know if they are getting enough water? Monitor their feed intake. If your cows are eating less than you think they should then they may not be getting enough water. We ran into that issue this fall; the weatehr was pretty cold, our snow was very dry, our hay is dryer than normal and we were feeding more straw. I thnik becasue of these factors the cows couldn't get enough water. They weren't eating enough for a few days; I let them back up for water and the next day they had really started eating again, everything they had left was eaten along with the days feed. I'll have to wait for more moist snow i guess. [/QUOTE]
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