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In addition to being an essential nutrient, water often contains minerals required by animals. The contribution of a mineral found in water to the requirement of animals for that mineral depends on the concentration of the mineral, its chemical form, and the amount of water consumed. Important considerations must be made in the minerals interaction with other minerals in the water and in other feedstuffs.
Water quality may contain an endless number of chemicals, microorganisms and dissolved or suspended particles, which can impair performance. Thefollowing section attempts to define some common water analyses in relation to animal performance and potential mineral interactions.
Hardness is generally expressed as the sum of calcium and
magnesium reported in equivalent amounts of calcium carbonate. Other
cations in water such as zinc, iron, strontium, aluminum, and
manganese may contribute to hardness but are usually in very small
amounts compared to calcium and
magnesium. The minerals in hard or very hard water should be
identified.
High calcium ties up zinc. Excess Ca and Mg causes a decrease absorption of P. Excess Mg decreases absorption of Ca, replaces Ca in bone and increases Ca excretion. Excess Ca and P decrease absorption of Mn., and its utilization. High Ca. reduces F absorption. Ca levels can affect Fe utilization. Excess Ca can reduce absorption of Cu and I.
Iron may occur in water as ferrous bicarbonate, which when dissolved is colorless. However, as soon as the water is drawn and comes in contact with air, the iron oxidizes and becomes the insoluble ferric hydroxide. Carbon dioxide is a by-product of this process. High dietary Fe can decrease performance parameters in many animal species. High levels of Iron may reduce Cu, Co, Mn, Se, and Zn utilization thus leading to deficiencies of these minerals. Fe overload increases the risk of infection and neoplasia. High Fe often causes decreased water consumption.
PH has little direct effect on the acceptability of water unless the pH is extreme on either end of the spectrum. PH can have a major influence on the chemical reactions involved in its treatment or on the corrosive nature of the water. High pH impairs the efficiency of chlorination, while low pH(below 6 or 6.5) may precipitate some antibacterials. Acidic water can cause chronic acidosis problems when used in combination with some rations. The pH of water also affects the occurrence of urinary calculi. More alkaline water leads to more skin conditions, bacterial infections and enteric problems, especially in neonates. Alkalinity usually promotes the growth of bacteria, and may cause precipitation of scale in water pipes and heaters.
Tired of top dressing and always looking for ways to make your feed work?
Then let us help you. Take advantage of our FREE ration building service. We can design a feed ration to be mixed at your mill that will be a specific feed for your animals using your water test results.
We can now target your specific nutritional needs.
We now offer Water Test kits to help determine the problems your largest feed ingredient -water- maybe causing.
These kits include Copper, Iron, Hardness, and PH tests. These kits are $9.25. This includes shipping charges, instructions and mineral interaction information.
Due to the high bio-availability of our products we can over come many of the problems your water may be causing.
Our products contain proteinated minerals, which avoid mineral interactions and increase absorption. Our feed rations are built around these products.
To use 
Ccontact us directly