Harsh water on hair

[Jacob B]

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]

Good question. I’ve never actually thought about it with cattle but I know that hard water makes human hair dry out.

 

[Tallcool1]

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]

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]

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]

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.