When you own a horse, it is common to see a substantial increase on your regular expenses. By taking the steps to save money, you can lower your costs without compromising the care that your horse receives. An automatic watering system can be a great way to ensure that you are able to care properly for your horse while simultaneously reducing your expenses. Here are a few ways to save money when you own a horse.

Refrain from Overfeeding Forage

Overfeeding is incredibly common, especially in the winter months. Unfortunately, this creates a great deal of waste. Consult carefully with your veterinarian to determine the right amount of forage to feed to your horse. This will help you to lower your waste and your expenses.

Care for Equipment

Regularly paying for repairs or new equipment can cost you a great deal of money over time. When you are able to provide the appropriate care for your equipment, you will ensure that it stays in good condition. Ensure that you keep all of your equipment dry and clean. It will also be important to ensure that you store all of the equipment correctly. Whenever it is possible to repair your equipment, you should choose that rather than paying for the replacement of the equipment.

Compare Products

It is useful to ensure that you compare various products that you may use for your horse. This will enable you to get a better idea about the costs that you should expect, as well as what options will be the most cost-effective for your own uses.

Buy Used Equipment

Whenever possible, you may want to consider purchasing used equipment. Ensure that the equipment is in good condition before purchasing it. Buying your equipment used can greatly reduce your upfront expenses.

Consider Horse Insurance

Horse insurance can help to handle unexpected costs that may impact your horse. You may want to consider purchasing horse insurance to help you lower unexpected costs. It is also a good idea to have an emergency fund set aside to help cover large, unexpected expenses.

Buy in Bulk

Horses require a great deal of care. You may be able to reduce your expenses by purchasing things in bulk. For example, if you buy a year’s worth of feed, you will be able to buy it during the harvesting season, when it will be least expensive. This will help you to save a great deal of money over time.

Get an Automatic Waterer

An automatic waterer is an amazing solution to ensure your horse stays hydrated. Not only do these waterers require little maintenance and care, but they can also improve the health of your horse. This can help to reduce your regular veterinary expenses, as well as ensure a better quality of life for your horse.

Installing an automatic waterer can help you save money on the care of your horses. When you work with our team at Bar-Bar-A, you will be able to install the best automatic waterer to meet your specific needs. For more information about how to save money when you own a horse, as well as the automatic watering systems we can provide, contact our experts today!

When you ensure that you inspect your automatic waterer on a regular basis, you will be able to limit damage that may occur to your waterer. This will help to keep it in good condition and functioning effectively overtime. Ultimately, you will want to regularly examine the waterer to identify any problems that may be present. Fortunately, our automatic watering systems are self-cleaning because the water doesn’t remain in the bowl for an extended period of time. Here are a few things that you should know about how to inspect our Bar-Bar-A automatic waterer.

Check Internal Parts

When you first inspect your automatic waterer, you will want to ensure that you check the internal parts of the system. This will help you to identify when any of these components are damaged. When you replace these damaged parts, you will be able to ensure that the internal components of your system are able to stay in good condition for an extended period of time. The appropriate maintenance will go a long way toward keeping your automatic waterer functional and effective.

Identify a Slow Filling Bowl

Check how long it takes for the bowl of your automatic waterer to fill. If it fills particularly slowly, it can impact how much water your livestock or horses are able to drink. When the bowl fills particularly slowly, you will likely need to have the drain valve changed. This can minimize these issues and restore the functionality of your automatic watering system.

Identify a Slow Draining Bowl

The opposite may also be true of your automatic watering system. When the bowl of your automatic waterer is draining too slowly, the filter is likely partially clogged. By cleaning or changing out the filter, you will be able to restore the functionality of your automatic watering system. It is important to pay attention to the speed at which your bowl regularly drains or fills, so that you can identify when changes are impacting your system.

Overflowing

Overflowing is a sure sign that there is a problem that is impacting your watering system. This is usually caused by a clog. In order to prevent this overflowing, you likely will need to clean the main valve of the system. This will help to ensure that water is able to flow effectively throughout the system.

Check on Paddle and Cable

The paddle and cable of your automatic watering system may sustain damage over time. In general, they may need to be replaced in order to ensure that they continue to operate as intended. It is important to regularly inspect these paddles and cables so that you can identify when they will need to be replaced.

Our Low Maintenance Automatic Waterers

In most situations, our automatic watering systems require very little maintenance. They are self-cleaning, because the water doesn’t sit inside of the bowl, which prevents the growth of algae. In addition to this, our watering systems don’t use electricity. You won’t have to inspect the electrical components to ensure that they are functioning as they are supposed to. This is also a much safer alternative for your livestock, because you won’t have to worry about the combination of water and electricity.

An automatic watering system can be incredibly beneficial for your property. It can aid in hydration and preventing damage to your property. When you install one of our automatic watering systems, you can limit a great number of problems. For more information about how to inspect your automatic watering systems, as well as the maintenance that they require to stay in the best condition, contact us at Bar-Bar-A today!

When you are aware of some of the most common livestock illnesses, you will be able to take the steps to protect your livestock and improve their health. Ensuring that your livestock has access to fresh, clean water can help to prevent many serious consequences that may otherwise occur. For example, dehydration can lead to an increased risk of colic, which can be deadly. At the Horsedrinker, we offer the ideal automatic watering systems to help improve the hydration of your livestock. Here are some of the most common livestock illnesses to watch out for with your livestock.  

Categories of Livestock Illnesses

In general, common livestock illnesses are divided into four different categories. Some of the most common illnesses fall into the respiratory category. These are often transmittable, which can quickly lead to devastation for your herd. Another category is enteric. This category covers illnesses that impact the intestines and can cause digestive issues. The third category involves illnesses that impact the skin and hooves, while the fourth category involves neurological illnesses.

Bovine Respiratory Disease Complex (BRDC)

BRDC, bovine respiratory disease complex, is an illness that falls under the respiratory category. This is often called “shipping” disease because it can frequently impact cattle that have recently experienced the stress of shipping. It also commonly impacts calves that have recently been weaned. This is because one of the biggest contributors to BRDC is an increase in stress. Vaccinations can help to prevent BRDC, which is often easier than resolving it after it has impacted your cattle.

BRDC can impact the growth of your cattle, which can have serious long-term consequences. It also often results in respiratory distress. Some signs to look out for with bovine respiratory disease complex include a runny nose, loss of appetite, or fever.

Dehydration and Heat Stress

Dehydration and heat stress can easily create substantial problems with your cattle. It can greatly increase the chances of colic, along with many other issues with their health. When your cattle are dehydrated, they will often exhibit “tented skin” around the eyes. Their eyes commonly appear sunken, as well. Dehydrated cattle tend to have yellow or dark urine, as well as develop a fever.  

Bovine Virus Diarrhea (BVD)

Bovine virus diarrhea is another common livestock illness to be aware of. This can be an incredibly expensive illness for livestock owners. Some signs of BVD include nasal discharge, a deep cough, scours, and a fever. When your cattle develop this illness, it can cause infertility, birth defects, and abortion. In susceptible livestock, bovine virus diarrhea may even result in hemorrhaging and death.

Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR)

A highly contagious illness to watch out for is infection bovine rhinotracheitis. This is a respiratory disease that can often be identified by inflamed nasal passages, rapid breathing, fever, loss of appetite, and coughing. This can lead to infertility as well as abortions, which is one of the reasons why it is essential to watch for IBR.

Signs to Look Out For

When you are trying to ensure that your cattle stay healthy, it is important to regularly inspect for signs of illness. Checking various areas can help you to identify problems early on. Ensure that you check on their eyes, hooves, and skin. You should also ensure that you regularly check for respiratory and neurological problems. This can help you to identify problems early on. It is also useful to ensure that you have a veterinarian regularly examine your cattle. They will generally be more adept at identifying issues than you will be.

These are just a few common livestock illnesses to watch out for. It is important to ensure that your livestock stays hydrated to help improve their health. An automatic watering system can help to ensure that they have constant access to clean water. These systems store water beneath the ground so that it remains at a comfortable temperature throughout the year. This often aids in encouraging water consumption. If you are considering implementing livestock watering systems to protect your cattle, you can contact our team at the Horsedrinker for more guidance. To learn more about the many benefits of an automatic watering system, contact us at the Horsedrinker for more information.