Project Overview
Annual Reports
Information Products
Commodities
- Agronomic: barley, soybeans, wheat, grass (misc. perennial), hay
- Additional Plants: native plants
- Animals: bovine
Practices
- Animal Production: animal protection and health, feed additives, preventive practices, feed/forage
- Education and Training: demonstration, extension, on-farm/ranch research, technical assistance
- Farm Business Management: budgets/cost and returns, agricultural finance, risk management
Abstract:
Many thousands of acres of rangeland are unusable, or only minimally usable due to a lack of good, low-sulfate water sources. Water with sulfate levels in excess of 2500 ppm consumed by cattle result in poor weight gains and, in some cases, death. Hydrogen sulfide gas produced in the rumen of livestock fed high sulfate water is the primary agent implicated in the development of sulfur-induced polioencephalomalacia (sPEM), leading to poor animal performance and death. The overall goal of this project was to identify a feed additive that would negate the toxic effects of high-sulfate water thereby allowing cattle to safely graze rangelands with high-sulfate water sources. Thiamin was the initial substance evaluated, but it was not consistently effective in reducing the effects of high-sulfate water on cattle health and performance. Zeolite appeared promising due to its potential as a hydrogen sink, hypothetically preventing formation of hydrogen sulfide. It, however, also failed to reduce the impacts of high-sulfate water fed to livestock. Our research team identified an alternative, molybdenum, as a potential feed additive for reducing the negative effects of high-sulfate water consumption. Preliminary results showed molybdenum substantially reduced the production of hydrogen sulfide gas in vitro. An evaluation of the impacts of feeding molybdenum was conducted in summer 2009. The results, however, indicate that molybdenum is also ineffective in reducing the negative impacts of high-sulfate water on animal health and performance.
Introduction:
Water is a critical resource on semi-arid rangelands of western South Dakota, North Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas. Livestock production on these rangelands is absolutely dependent on adequate quantity and quality of water. It is well known that inadequate water supplies limit the extent to which available forage may be utilized on rangelands, however poor quality water can be just as limiting. When a water source provides water that is lethal, producers are unable to graze livestock on the surrounding rangeland unless an alternate source of good quality water is provided. Many water sources in western South Dakota and in parts of western North Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas provide water that is high in total dissolved solids (TDS), with sulfates as a major component. Thus, many thousands of acres of rangeland are unusable, or only minimally usable due to a lack of good, low-sulfate water sources. Water with sulfate levels in excess of 2500 ppm consumed by cattle result in poor weight gains and, in some cases, death. Hydrogen sulfide gas produced in the rumen of livestock fed high sulfate water is the primary agent implicated in the development of sulfur-induced polioencephalomalacia (sPEM), leading to poor animal performance and death. It is very expensive to provide alternative water sources for cattle grazing rangelands that support only high-sulfate water sources. It is also difficult and expensive to leave rangelands ungrazed and find alternative forage sources when good quality water cannot be provided to a pasture. Studies in the literature suggest that it is possible to ameliorate the effects of high-sulfate water using feed additives that reduce the production of H2S in the rumen.
Thus, the overall goal of this project was to identify a feed additive that would negate the toxic effects of high-sulfate water thereby allowing cattle to safely graze rangelands with high-sulfate water sources.
Project objectives:
1. Determine the appropriate feed additive for ameliorating the effects of high-sulfate water fed to cattle, its effectiveness when supplied to cattle grazing pastures and its cost effectiveness.
2. Initiate a demonstration of the effectiveness of that feed additive on cooperator ranches.
3. Educate producers on the dangers of high-sulfate water and their options for reducing its impacts.