Is clean, non-infective water a nutrient that gets overlooked by stockmen to the health detriment of their livestock?

We all know that water is vital to survival, and we know that cows can get some of their daily needs from the moisture contained within their feed. Every stockman will know that cows need plenty of clean water to produce milk. However, do they understand that poor water quality can result in herd health complications?

Farmers will have strategies for ensuring clean water. They may have Ultra Violet filters at the source of water on-farm, they may have a weekly rota whereby different staff are tasked with brushing the slime on the walls of the water troughs. Do they understand the cause of that said slime, and the effect it has on their livestock health? That slime is biofilm, a nest built by bacteria using the mineral in the water. Those bacteria can produce toxins that are problematic for the cows that drink the water. “The toll on the immune system could explain why some chronic mastitis cow become clinical” says Zoe Davies, operations manager at Pruex Ltd.

Pruex work with farmers to ensure that bacterial biofilms don’t become problematic on farm. The company has developed a three-fold strategy to ensure optimum quality drinking water for livestock.

 

  1. Find,
    1. The Find process involves microbiology testing of existing biofilms.
  2. Fix,
    1. Based on the results the Fix involves daily dosing of Pruex Water Plus bacteria into the drinking water. This changes the population of biofilms from harmful to harmless and reduces the risk of infections on farm. The protocols applied on farm are reducing the need for antibiotics by over 70%.
  3. Tell
    1. The Tell process involves a discussion with consumers of the good work done in agriculture to reduce the need for antibiotics.

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 “You can’t have clean milk if you give your cows dirty water. Our work on European and African farms demonstrates this point on a daily basis.” says Miss Davies. Farmers looking to improve herd health and drinking water quality are encouraged to contact Pruex.

Pruex is a One Health company that inspires Prudent as Opposed to Excessive antibiotic use in Human and animal markets. Pruex.co.uk