Abstract
ABSTRACT Objective The objective was to evaluate the effects of drinking water sulfate concentrations on DMI, water intake, growth, and serum mineral concentrations in growing beef heifers fed a high forage diet (63% DM). Materials and Methods Two blocks of 16 Hereford-cross heifers were used in a randomized complete block design with 4 treatments. Treatments resulted in water sulfate concentrations of 292 ± 23.5, 1,245 ± 78.7, 2,305 ± 89.7, and 3,376 ± 84.9 mg/L. Heifers were housed in tiestalls, and feed and water intakes were measured daily. Body weight and serum mineral concentrations were measured on 2 consecutive days at the start and end of the 77-d study. Results and Discussion Increasing water sulfate increased and then decreased DMI (quadratic, P Implications and Applications These data suggest that water sulfate concentrations above 2,000 mg/L may decrease DMI and that increasing water sulfate concentrations linearly reduced serum copper.
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