Factors of risk related to the bacteriological quality of animal drinking water

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the factors of risk related to the management of the drinking water of heifers that can impact with the bacteriological quality of the water. The factors of risk studied were: chlorine absence in water, water samples collected during the rainy season and animal management in open place. The bacteriological quality of water was determined by the quantification of enterococos, Escherichia coli and heterotrophic mesophilic microorganisms. Non-chlorinated and chlorinated water samples were analyzed of the water throughs of heifers kept in individual shelters in open place in and individual shelters in covered place, during the rainy and dry seasons. The results of the relative risk indicated that the absence of chlorine in the water increased 8,7 times the possibility of the water be inadequate for animal consumption. The correspondence analysis associated water samples inadequate for animal use with non-chlorined water, and water samples adequate for animal use with chlorinated water. No association was verified between the quality of the water and the rainy season or management in open place. Thus, chlorine absence is a factor that collaborates with poor quality of the water, ratifying the necessity of the chlorination of animals’ drinking water.