Providing water is elementary, either plumb it in or carry it in a bucket. Simple! Right? Not necessarily!
Problems can occur with the water itself. Most city water is chlorinated which can wreak havoc on your horse’s delicate intestinal bacteria. Well water can also cause problems. Nitrates or bacteria can contaminate deep ground water wells and surface water supplies (shallow wells and ponds, lakes and rivers). Nitrates can come from fertilizer runoff from neighbouring fields or from your own manure pile. Keep your manure pile covered during heavy rain to prevent nitrogen from being washed out into the soil. Malfunctioning septic systems or decomposing trash or animal carcasses also can contaminate ground and surface water with drugs, chemicals and organisms.
Hard water, which is high in macro minerals such as calcium and magnesium, can upset your horse’s mineral balance especially if these nutrients are also being supplemented in the diet. Water with high total dissolved solids contains large amounts of micro minerals such as dissolved zinc, copper, aluminum, fluorides, salts, iron or sulphur. This can also affect your horse’s mineral balance as well as make the water less palatable. Many people treat water destined for human use in the house or, at least in the bottle, but leave the barn water in its raw state for the animals. Water treatment will eliminate or reduce contaminants that would or have been causing you unnecessary expenses such as plumbing and maintenance bills, pharmaceutical bills and veterinary or medical bills
Nothing has greater influence on the overall well being of the horse than water intake. It affects fluid balance, temperature control, exercise tolerance, and digestibility of feedstuffs. There are two primary concerns for horse owners in relation to water quality. First, is the quality of the water poor enough to affect consumption or cause toxicities and therefore compromise the health of the horse? Second, does the water serve as a carrier for the spread of disease? Larry Lawrence, Extension Animal Scientist, Horses, Animal and Poultry Sciences, Virginia Tech
Water treatment is the most effective insurance you can have!
Water is an essential nutrient for animals and of course humans. An adequate and safe water supply is essential for good health. Contaminated water can adversely affect the growth, reproduction, or productivity of livestock and poultry. Although there is scant research data on the economic effects of water quality on livestock performance, logic and our experiences, tells us that farm water supplies, either surface or ground, must be protected against contamination from micro-organisms, chemicals and other pollutants. As proven by the Walkerton event, just one contaminant can cause illness and even death. Substances that originate on livestock farms and often contaminate water supplies include nitrates, algae, bacteria, viruses, protozoa, parasites, drugs, organic materials, phenols (indicate insecticides, pesticides and herbicides), and suspended solids. A high level of suspended solids and an objectionable taste, odour or colour in water can cause animals to drink less than they should. The result of poor water intake can have effects such as colic in horses.
Water can serve as a reservoir for many different disease causing organisms and toxins. Stagnant water contaminated with manure or other nutrients may develop blue-green algae, which can poison livestock, causing muscle tremors, liver damage, and death. Pond water needs to be observed for the presence of algae and other harmful organisms such as mosquito larvae during hot, dry weather. Leptospirosis (possibly linked to Uveitis) and Fusobacterium (more commonly known as “foot-rot.”) are two bacterial contaminants that often use water and mud, respectively, as modes of transportation from animal to animal. Leptospirosis is spread through urine of carrier animals. This disease often manifests itself as reproductive problems. Problems may range from infertility, to low milk production, to widespread late-term abortion. The organism can survive for extended periods of time in surface waters. One should take care to avoid forcing livestock to drink from water sources that may be contaminated with urine.
“Horse owners gladly pay out thousands of dollars on appropriate horse feed and supplements yearly, yet they never ponder the problems that can occur in their water supply. If you have ever had a hefty veterinary bill, I don’t need to convince you that prevention speaks volumes. In order to ensure your horse’s health, safe clean drinking water should be an essential component in every barn. Leptospirosis and Fusabacterium are just two bacterial contaminants that often use water and mud respectively, as modes of transportation from animal to animal. Leptospirosis (which is said to have a link to Uveitis) is spread through urine of carrier animals.”
Laura Ireland, Ireland Stables, Canadian Horses