Effect of Natural Combinations of Ambient Temperature and Relative Humidity on the Water Intake of Lactating and Nonlactating Dairy Cows

Abstract

Four trials were conducted to measure the water consumption of dry and lactating cows under varying natural combinations of temperature and relative humidity. There was a highly significant correlation between water intake and temperature, but relative humidity did not have a significant effect upon water intake when temperature was held constant. A prediction equation was constructed using the regression of water intake on ambient temperature, and comparison was made between the predicted water intake of cows in this study and the. water intake of certain cows determined from the tables prepared by other workers. Water consumption of cows kept under natural conditions appeared to have greater variation with the extremes of temperature than did that of cows kept in controlled chambers.