Abstract
A 2 × 4 × 3 factorial experiment was conducted with 768 laying hens for 308 days to examine the effect of 1) softened versus unsoftened water, 2) four types of watering devices (cone-shaped, trigger-cup, fount-cup, and vertically activated nipple drinkers), 3) diets with three percentages of added sodium chloride (0, .35, and .7%), and 4) interactions of these factors on laying hen production parameters. Water softening improved performance of hens consuming unsupplemented rations as compared with performance of hens consuming unsupplemented diets and drinking unsoftened water. Added sodium from the water softening process had neither a beneficial nor detrimental effect on production parameters when the diets were supplemented at .35 or .7% dietary salt. Although there was a negative effect of the nipple drinker on laying hen production, there was no indication of an interaction between the drinking of softened water and watering devices on laying hen performance.
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