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Effects of Artificial Showers, Natural Rain and Wallowing on The Body Temperatures of Animals

Imperial Veterinary Research Institute^,2

Abstract

Experiments were conducted to determine the effects on body temperature of artificial and natural rain in water buffaloes, sebu cattle small hill cattle and sheep, and the effects of wallowing, hosing and splashing in water buffaloes.

A heavy shower for two hours will lower the body temperature of buffaloes by 2.8° F. in the morning and 1.6° F. in the afternoon, on the average, while a similar shower will reduce temperature of zebu cows by only 0.5° F in the afternoon. Young buffaloes are especially susceptible to the effects of rain on body temperature. With buffaloes, the fall is mainly during the shower, while with cattle it is due to the drying-off period.

Mean body temperature decreases of about 0.7° to 2.7° F. as a result of natural rain, have been noted during the summer monsoon at Izatnagar, and of 1.6° to 3.8° F. in hill cattle and 1.4° to 2.7° F. in sheep, standing in monsoon rain at Mukteswar.

The fall in body temperature due to rainfall can be counteracted by light exercise during the shower or drying-off period, or both. Rough drying following the shower is also beneficial. Adult water buffaloes wallowed naturaly from April to October, when air and water temperatures were above 85° and 77° F., respectively. Desire to wallow was most intense from July to October.

Various methods of cooling water buffaloes were tested. Wallowing for 20 minutes and one hour gave similar results. Hosing for 3 minutes was as effective as wallowing for 20 minutes, while splashing for 10 minutes was not quite as good. Wallowing by the previously exercised animal will reduce the temperature by as much as 3° to 4° F.

Iu organized dairies, a shower bath should be practically as efficacious, more hygienic, and no more costly than a properly-constructed wallow.

¹ The author is indebted to Col. C. E. MacGuckin, director of Military Dairy Farms for information kindly supplied, to M. S. Menon and K. C. Sinha for assistance in making observations, and to Suprakas Sen for statistical calculations.

² Mukteswar and Ijatnagar, United Provinces, India.