Water metabolism of cattle in East Africa I. The problem and the experimental procedure

Abstract

1. The direct and indirect effects of low rainfall on the problems of cattle husbandry in East Africa are discussed, and an example of what these problems mean in practice is described.2. A co-operative experiment is described that was planned to assess the water requirements of Bos indicus type cattle in a semi-arid region of Tanganyika, and to determine the effect of water deprivation on cattle productivity.3. Ten sets of identical twin zebu (Bos indicus) or part-zebu cattle were used in this experiment. The basic layout consisted of two treatments, an ‘experimental’ and a ‘control’, one twin from each set being placed on one or other of the treatments. Twins in the ‘experimental’ group were used to determine the effect of watering at 24-, 48- and 72-hr. intervals and of forced walking of 3, 6 and 10 miles per day in addition to normal grazing exercise. The experiment lasted 2 years from 16 April 1960 to 11 May 1962.4. Climate at the experimental site, the experimental layout, the experimental animals and grazings, management of animals and grazings and experimental observations are described in detail.5. Data on seasonal changes in the nutrient content of forage on the grazings is given, and the effect of these changes on the nutrition of the experimental cattle is discussed briefly.