Water Conservation for Hog Operations

October 2008

Water is a vital resource for hog operations.  For pigs, like all living things, water is the most important part of a diet, and it makes up 50 to 80 per cent of the animals' body weight.  Water is used in every aspect of a pig's life cycle, from pregnancy and milk production to growth.  Water is also needed for the animal's daily maintenance, as moisture is constantly being lost through respiration and elimination of waste.  Water conservation can protect your resource and save money.

Since water plays such a vital role in a pig's life, the availability of a high volume, good quality water source is of the utmost importance for a hog operation.  New facilities can incorporate water conserving measures into the capital cost of the project and existing facilities can make modifications to reduce costs.

Water should be recognized as a limited natural resource and, therefore, its use should be monitored in order to identify opportunities for conservation.  Research has shown that, with proper equipment and management, water consumption can be reduced by up to 25 to 30 per cent resulting in decreased capital and operational costs.

Some hints to help reduce water wastage:

• Use bowls or troughs for watering gestating sows.
• Use wet/dry feeders, bowls or ball-bite drinkers in place of drinker nipples for younger animals.
• Keep barn temperature as close as possible to the pigs' comfort zone.
• Repair leaking water lines, taps/faucets, hoses, etc. as soon as possible.
• Adjust the height of drinker nipples as animals grow (a general rule is to position the nipple one to two inches above the top of the smallest animal's shoulder).
• Do not feed excess protein or minerals.

Manure from hog barns has very high moisture contents, upwards of 90 per cent in some facilities depending on the barn operation/maintenance.  Employing modern biosecurity measures, many hog barns are washed when the animals are moved out of a room and before a new batch arrives.  This wash water flows into short term manure storage below the barn floor.  This volume of diluted manure varies by operation and can be adjusted by management and machines.  Washing staff need to be water conscious and pressure washers should be kept in good working order so that nozzles can spray enough pressurized water to do a good job.   

Excessive water spillage not only adds to the volume of manure, but can also decrease air quality, allow bacteria growth, encourage insects and can result in slippery floors that are a potential cause of barn worker and animal injury.  Increased humidity within a barn can also reduce the life span of the barn by moistening and reducing the effectiveness of the insulation or increasing the weight of dust which settles on ventilation fan blades.

The Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture has Environmental Engineers and Livestock Development Specialists who are available to assist in implementing water conservation measures for new and existing facilities.

For further information, phone the Livestock Development Branch in Regina at 306-787-9112, in Saskatoon at 306-933-5992, or see the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture website at www.agriculture.gov.sk.ca