Fresh water is essential for encouraging your animals to eat well and produce optimal milk. Choosing the best long-lasting stock troughs on your dairy farm can take some planning, so we have put together some advice for you.
Aim for fresh, Cool Water
Position your stock troughs in shaded areas to keep the water cool and encourage your livestock to drink. A cow’s rumen and gut generate significant heat, especially during lactation. If the animal is hot, it will eat less to help cool itself down and potentially impact milk yield. The cow will eat well, maintain its body temperature, and produce milk by offering cool water.
Trough Placement for Dairy Herds
Ground stock troughs often offer the best access for dairy cattle, especially in larger herds. However, fence stock troughs are also an excellent option for smaller groups or in holding pens. Consider placing the troughs along cow tracks or near grazing areas to encourage frequent daily drinking.
Choosing the Right Shape
Available in a capacity of 1500l, round stock troughs are well for dairy cattle, as they allow more animals to drink simultaneously. This is particularly important after milking when many cows may want to drink at once. Ensure the trough is large enough to maintain a sufficient water level, keeping it cool and readily available for your herd.
Plastic or Concrete?
For a permanent solution that’s robust enough to withstand the heavy use of a large dairy herd, choose concrete troughs made from 40mpa steel fibre reinforced concrete. These are durable and can be strategically placed in paddocks or near the milking shed. If you’ve got a big paddock, we suggest putting one at either end to easily access the water.
For a more versatile option, use plastic troughs made from UV-resistant materials. With plastic troughs, you get the added benefit of portability. If, for example, you need to move the cows in stages through a pasture, plastic troughs give you this flexibility. In winter, this portability allows you to reposition the stock troughs away from mud that tends to form around troughs in wet weather.
Accommodating Dairy Cows of Different Ages
You’ll likely have cows of various ages and sizes in a dairy herd. Hence, ensure your troughs are accessible to mature cows and younger heifers. Ground-level troughs are often best for this purpose. Separate, shallower troughs may be necessary for calves.
Deep stock troughs can benefit dairy farms in hot climates, as they keep a larger volume of water cool. However, ensure the trough walls aren’t so high that smaller or weaker animals struggle to access the water.
How to Choose the Best Stock Troughs
When choosing the best stock troughs for your dairy cattle, remember that a lactating cow can drink up to 150 litres daily. This requirement can increase even further during peak lactation and in hot weather. Choose troughs that can deliver peak water volume during the hottest parts of the day and after milking when cows drink the most. This will prevent your cows from waiting for water, which could negatively impact their hydration and milk production.
Calculate your herd’s daily water requirements based on herd size, average milk yield, and climate to find the ideal trough size and number for your dairy farm. As a general guide, aim to provide at least 15cm of trough space per cow in your milking herd to ensure each of your dairy cattle stays well-hydrated, comfortable, and productive throughout their lactation cycles.