How much water do pigs need?
in this article, I will be showing you some of the benefits of water to pigs, how much they need and also why water plays a key role in professional pig rearing.
If you can recall when we were talking about pig feeding, it was amazing to see how the digestive system of a human and that of a pig are very similar. Pigs are omnivorous just like humans. How important is water to you?
Water is that resource we drink to hydrate stay nourished, cool off the body when it's hot, heat the body when its cold drink as a preference when having a rapport. The list is endless. Water is very important to us and so we find ways to store it, harvest and purify for ourselves.
Pigs need water too just like we do if not more than we do since they are in a confinement...
When you begin to learn the animal you will begin to appreciate and realize how important water is to pigs.
Pigs will drink water when you feed them more dry feed, they get very thirsty and that is why its good practice to mix dry feeds with water which also helps digestion. Pigs will drink water after playing, for fun, when bored, when they feel hot if the water is cool and also when they just want to be naughty. Feed intake also increases when fed with enough water. I can't insist enough, pigs love water and they will love you if you provide them with a constant supply of water.
There are two methods I am well conversant with: Bowl system and Nipple drinker system.
Drinking bowls are accepted very well by the animals. When they are drinking, the head disappears in the bowl due to the lateral collar. This also significantly reduces water losses.
Drinking bowls are especially appropriate for suckling pigs, as the pigs can see the water and therefore readily accept this drinker.
My preferred method of watering my pens is using nipple drinkers click to view drinkers for their cost-effective solution for clean water and reduced contamination. This type of drinkers are made from stainless steel so they will not rust but more so nipple drinkers automatically let water out when the pig bites on them and reduce water waste.
Nipple drinkers encourage the natural behavior of suckling from an early age encouraging every pig to use them. Nipple installation also comes with specific instructions especially the angle of the drinker, the height and the pressure. That I will share below.
So how much water does a pig need? See the table below, multiple by number of your herd.
Drinkers Health
Ensure sufficient access to watering points
It is advisable to have more than one drinker per pen; this will act as a back up in the event of a drinker becoming blocked or broken and reduce dominance.
Check that all drinkers are clean and working on a daily basis
Check flow rates of every nipple and bite drinker between batches. This is a simple task requiring a large measuring jug, a watch and a minute of your time
Operate the drinker for 30 seconds and note the volume of water collected. Double this to give the flow rate in liters/minute.
When testing flow rates check the difference between those nearest to and furthest from the supply, as the variation between drinkers may surprise you. A significant difference between the first and last drinkers could indicate a blockage or problem with the water pressure
Water pressure can be affected by factors such as the diameter of the washer orifice within the drinker; cleanliness of the filter; pipe diameter; deposits within the pipeline; and header tank height
Drinkers must be at the correct height for the size of pigs. In grower pens/yards it is important to ensure drinkers are accessible to both the smallest and largest pigs on both entry and exit
The drinkers should be positioned to allow easy access and ideally should be within 1–2 meters from the feeders
Easy and prompt access to water is essential to prevent dehydration. For the first few days after weaning consider additional “communal” drinker points,
Wet-fed pigs require a separate source of clean drinking water
Ensure that wastage is minimal and repair any leaking pipes or drinkers promptly.
Monitoring water supply to a building can establish basic usage patterns, which can then be used to monitor changes in drinking behavior, eg as a result of a blockage, leak, change of feed or environmental temperature or disease
outbreak. Trials have shown that in the event of a disease outbreak a change in water consumption will often be apparent before clinical signs are.
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