• Home
  • Agriculture
  • Fishing and aquaculture
  • Forests
  • Minerals and petroleum
  • About us and our services
A-Z INDEX | SEARCH | CONTACT US
New South Wales Department of Primary Industries subsite home
Home »  Agriculture  »  Natural resources and climate  »  Water & irrigation  »  Watering livestock  » 

Water & Irrigation

Water requirements for sheep and cattle

primefact cover
Primefact Number: 326    Edition: First edition    Released/reviewed: 01 Jan 2007

Water is an essential nutrient for all animals. It is important for both animal welfare and business profitability that sheep and cattle have an adequate supply of good quality water. Amount and quality of water required varies between species of livestock, between classes of stock within the species, and in response to the environment in which the stock are running.

The suitability of water for stock use is determined by the following factors which are discussed in this Primefact:

  • water quality, which includes salinity, acidity, toxic elements and compounds, and algal growth;
  • environmental factors such as air temperature and feed quality;
  • animal factors, which include breed differences and age and condition of stock.
Download
PDF icon Water requirements for sheep and cattle - Full version
 103.9 kb
Downloads require Adobe Acrobat Reader
  • Irrigation
  • Water quality and testing
  • Dams and storage
  • Drought strategies for water supply
  • Watering livestock
  • Climate science and irrigation research unit
  • Salinity and catchment hydrology research unit
  • Useful links
  • Contacts
Privacy | Legal | Report a problem
© State of New South Wales, 2005 | ServiceNSW