“Heat Stress Abatement II: Prevention IS the Cure”
by Chris Reinhardt, feedlot specialist
This summer has been a hot one all across the state of Kansas, and the heat continues. As beef producers and as extension professionals, there is a great deal we can take away from this summer to make us better as we move forward.
The good news is that we can be sure that not EVERY summer will be as hot and oppressive as the summer of 2010. The bad news is that we can be certain to encounter some level of heat stress EVERY summer. It’s our duty to prepare for exactly that inevitability. So that being said, what are the tools we have in our toolbox to be better prepared to deal with the heat next summer and those to follow?
- Pasture cattle fare better than confined cattle during heat events. Pasture cattle can often find adequate shade and water sources to alleviate heat stress during the hottest times of the day.
- Black-hided cattle sustain the greatest challenge due to absorption of more solar radiation compared to light-hided cattle.
- Shade works. If properly constructed to allow convective heat to leave cattle and allow breezes to reach cattle, providing shades during extreme heat events may eliminate the need for emergency intervention. Proper orientation will also prevent permanent wet areas.
- Wind breaks contribute to heat stress. Even if no extreme heat stress may be evident, reducing potentially cooling breezes can make cattle less likely to consume and perform up to their full potential. If wind breaks are needed for the winter, consider some form of temporary wind break which can be removed for the summer months.
- Extra drinking water space provides comfort and alleviates the demand on the water system during peak heat hours.
- Bedding with straw provides a lighter-colored, reflective surface to provide cattle a (relatively) cooler place to lie down and rest, thus reducing their activity and comfort during already stressful conditions.
- Sprinkling cattle may be essential. Spraying cattle is costly, time-consuming, and can contribute to increased humidity within the pen—but it also may be the difference between life and death for extremely heat-stressed cattle. Both cattle surface temperature and soil surface temperature are reduced as a result of spraying water which then evaporates, taking heat out of the surface.
Let’s make sure we get better next year:
- Make improvements to facilities. Build mounds and shades and eliminate wind breaks.
- Update our heat-stress remediation plans.
- Have water spraying equipment, tanks, and straw bales on hand going into next summer.
As a very challenging summer winds to a close, we all need to make sure we maximize the value of some very difficult and costly lessons.
