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Pork Strategic Farm - Water
Name:
Ben Williams
Farm sectors:
Pork
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About Pork Strategic Farm - Water
- Maintenance of water quality and quantity is part of the welfare code, set in line with the Animal Welfare Act 2006
- Supports the use of in line dosers in response to reduced antimicrobials in feed
- Water quality and quantity are linked to better performance and productivity
With the rise of in-line dosage and the reduced use of medicated feeds, our Strategic Farms explore the use of water quality and quantity as a resource on farm.
Water is one of the essential nutrients, just as important as the constituents of feed in the performance of pigs. Clear guidance can be found in the welfare codes, stating the amounts and quality of water provided at each growth stage.
Acceptable drinking water supplied to pigs is water that is safe to drink and does not cause any undesirable effects or is likely to compromise the animal’s health, as shown below:
The quality of the water, sourced either from mains or private supply, should meet acceptable microbiological and mineral levels.
Severe water deprivation may result in death; even minor dehydration can result in reduced feed intake, lower daily gain, poorer feed conversion, reduced milk production and lower weaning weights. When performance problems are being investigated, feed is often analysed, but the water supply is frequently overlooked.
Water is an underrated resource and the quality of water has an economic impact. Poor-quality water can affect the efficiency any additive has on the water system, meaning you may not be able to administer the chemicals (both cleaning products and medicinal products) at a point which is as cost-effective as you hoped.
In short, good-quality water will pay you a return in animal performance and use of additional materials. Our Pork Strategic Farms on water has produced a four-step process to help you achieve high efficiency in water quality and quantity. See more, to adopt this method and learnings onto your farm:
Plan
A thorough review of the water systems was completed by unit staff and the wider farm management team (vet and nutritionist). In some cases, additional specialists were also utilised and we identified:
- Mapping of the current water systems
- Detailing of recent modifications, such as in-line dosage
- Flow rates at each stage of production and across each paddock or building
- Current practice in terms of maintenance and cleaning of the water systems
- An analysis of water samples taken at the source
With all of this information, a programme of work was developed by the farms to address issues identified in the sampling and review.
Do
Work was completed on the infrastructure of the water systems (general repairs) and calculations were made to check there was adequate flow based on the guidance provided in the welfare codes, prior to a cleaning protocol being devised and tested on each of the Strategic Farms.
This involved a full deep clean, from the header tank and pipes through to the drinkers and nipples.
Once all systems were cleared, the water was retested to show the impact on a range of measures, such as:
- Coliform counts
- Dissolved mineral contents
- Other biologicals
- pH
The suite of testing AHDB offered included:
- Microbiology: E. coli, coliforms, total viable count (TVC) two days at 37.5°C and three days at 22°C
- Mineral: Mn, Mg, Ca, Cu, Na, Fe, hardness, pH, nitrates and nitrites and total dissolved solids (TDS)
Check
The final step is the production of a routine cleaning protocol that the farms can utilise to maintain high standards of water quality required for in-line dosage. This will allow you to check the rates of flow to meet the appropriate quantity reaching each stage of production.
Act
If you are interested in your own protocol for identifying if the quality and quantity of your water supply is sufficient, check these additional resources (remember that it is recommended that major changes to production are discussed with the farm management team, including the vet):
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