Webinar to explore heritability of cattle water intake

Great Plains Grazing will host a free webinar Feb. 19 on cattle water intake.

Water intake has not traditionally been considered a trait for genetic selection, and while water may not be limiting in some environments, there are large portions of the U.S. where water availability and quality may be a limiting factor in production that could be alleviated through selection, according to an announcement from Kansas State University.

Megan Rolf, assistant professor of animal science at Kansas State, will present a free webinar, “Is water intake a heritable trait?” at 10:00 a.m. (CST) on Feb. 19. The webinar is open to anyone interested in learning more about water intake in beef cattle.

Water is an essential nutrient, but one that is often forgotten because it is not balanced for in a ration.

According to Rolf, “We need a greater understanding of the amount of water consumed by different classes of animals, as well as more information about genetic correlations between traits to identify where potential antagonisms with other important production traits might exist.”

The webinar is part of a monthly series hosted by Great Plains Grazing, a U.S. Department of Agriculture Agriculture & Food Research Initiative Coordinated Agricultural Project grant. The webinar series aims to provide research-based information and is targeted for producers and extension agents. Previous webinars are archived and available for viewing on the Great Plains Grazing website at www.greatplainsgrazing.org.