Harsh water on hair

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Jacob B

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 31, 2008
Messages
542
Location
Ithaca, Michigan
My water seems to dry out the calves really bad! I've dumped numerous conditioners, hair supplements, etc into the hair to try n make that hide n hair healthier, was curious on opinions about water softeners in barns. I will have 3-4 calves to work that we are showing for the most part. Does putting a water softener in the barn a difference?
 

simba

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 18, 2011
Messages
524
Location
Saskatchewan, Canada
Good question. I’ve never actually thought about it with cattle but I know that hard water makes human hair dry out.
 

Tallcool1

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 21, 2012
Messages
969
I doubt that soft water is going to do anything that conditioners won't take care of. 

Be sure you are getting them completely rinsed out.

I have personally never seen a water softener in a barn.
 

RingBling

Member
Joined
Jul 12, 2015
Messages
6
Okay this will sound CRAZY but I've grown up on well water (sooo harsh!) and my calves were also rinsed with it. I found a cheap SULFATE FREE shampoo and used that weekly on them and it helped with freshening the coat and improving the hide. Try that before dumping a bunch of money into a system for the barn.
 

Cornsilks

Member
Joined
Aug 23, 2012
Messages
5
I agree with Tallcool.  You can buy a lot of whatever your favorite hair coat solution is for the cost of a water softener system
 

Rosco484

New member
Joined
Jun 23, 2018
Messages
1
I may be the odd man out but I do have a water softener in my barn, not so much for the cattle but for my equipment. My harsh well water was destroying all my equipment and fixtures and turning my portacool filters into 50 pound bricks.  BUT the horrible water never seemed to cause a problem with my calves I use Pro 23 Infusion Original "Leave In Treatment" conditioner and have had no problem with skin or hair. For what it's worth, good luck.
 
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