Quality of drinking water for cows and their health

The water quality and condition of the water supply systems used in livestock farms and complexes do not always meet the hygiene requirements. Studies of drinking water used for dairy cows were carried out at different seasons at 18 dairy farms located in four biogeochemical zones of Ukraine. An increased concentration of nitrate-containing compounds in the water of farms of north-eastern region has been established. The concentration in water of Plumbum, Cadmium, Arsen, Cuprum and Zinc did not exceed the permissible values. Mercury content was highest in spring and summer, exceeding the maximally allowed level (MAL) by 1,5 times on the farms of the western and 3,8 times – of the southern zone. The amount of Manganese in the water of dairy farms was high throughout the study period and ranged from 110 to 192 µg/dm3, which is 2–4 times higher than the allowed values. The concentration of Ferum in the water from the drinkers was found to be 105–513 µg/dm3 (MPL – 200 µg/dm3). It was the highest in the spring and exceeded the normative values by 1.5 – 3 times in the farms of the western and north-eastern zones. Among the internal diseases of the cows the most often there were registered the diseases of the digestive system, which accounted for 50–58 % of pathologies of the internal organs. In the western and northeastern biogeochemical zones the most frequently there were registered endemic diseases, in the central and southern biogeochemical zones - disturbances of protein and carbohydrate-lipid metabolism. There were also diagnosed the osteodystrophy, postpartum hypocalcemia and hypophosphatemia and A-hypovitaminosis. Diseases of the kidneys and urinary tract, nervous system, blood system and endocrine organs disfunction accounted for 13–18 % of the all morbidity level. The most common pathology in infertile cows was the ovarian yellow body, which was diagnosed in 69–73 % of affected cows. Mastitis was diagnosed in 6.3–11.4 % of cows in experimental farms. The perspective direction for the future research is the study of the impact of the water quality on the health and milk productivity of cows, quality of milk and the morbidity of cattle youngstock.