They say water is life, and it’s very true. Drinking water helps with thirst, but its real power is keeping your body functioning and healthy. This is true for humans and for animals.
In this article, I explain how water can influence the overall health of pigs.
Do pigs drink water? Yes, pigs drink water, and this is a delicious healthy source of life for them. It keeps them hydrated and motivated to be able to go through their daily activities. Pigs can drink water from bowls or automatic nipples, which is a great system for water consumption.
The type of watering system to use with your pigs varies depending on the types of pigs and their size.
But getting clean, healthy water for your pigs it’s essential for their overall health.
I personally recommend the automatic nipples watering system as it keeps the water clean and healthy.
The problem with using a simple bowl of water is that pigs will rush into the bowel, and they will immediately contaminate the water with mod, pee, feces, and whatever dirt they get. This is clearly a cocktail for disease.
Probably a wild pig will be fine by drinking dirty water, but a domesticated pig which you probably intend to eat will need clean, fresh water because, in the long run, this will prevent sickness.
Is Water Good for Pigs?
Yes, water it’s very good for pigs. But it’s not only good, but it’s also essential.
Many people don’t know this, but water it’s one of the most important nutrients for a pig to have.
It will help them grow strong and healthy.
And yes, water helps with hydration, but it also helps regulate the water pH, stabilizes body temperature, keeps electrolytes in balance, improves digestion, and has many other benefits.
So yes, water is good for pigs, but I’ll say it’s a must.
And to give you an idea of how important water is for pigs, a pig, and other animals can stop consuming food for days, and they will survive, but if they lose one-tenth of their water, it will result in death.
Pigs will typically consume most of their water when they drink it, but it can be consumed in its frozen form, which is a great option to use when you have a particular pig that doesn’t like to drink too much water.
Try giving them ice cubes with some frozen vegetables inside; I’m sure this will motivate them to consume more water while they eat something they like.
On the other hand, there are some pigs that can’t stop drinking water. The reason for this is that your pig is probably bored and just wants to drink and play in the water; in other cases, it could be a medical condition.
You can identify something is wrong because they will vomit after drinking so much water; in this type of case, it is necessary you get in contact with your vet to determine the reason for why your pigs are doing this.
Some of the diagnoses could be psychogenic water consumption, diabetes insipidus, kidney insufficiency, diabetes mellitus, liver disease, etc.
Another thing to consider is that pigs can compete for resources, and that includes food and water, so you must make sure all your pigs are consuming the necessary water they need on a daily basis.
Having sufficient water and food source is essential for their overall health, and if necessary, separating the bully pig to ensure the rest get the sufficient water they need.
How Much Water Does a Pig Drink Daily?
There are many factors that determine how much water a pig needs to drink, for example, their diet, days temperature, when is the water provided, stress level, etc.
But from a general perspective, a pig will drink between 2-8 liters of water on a daily basis. Please consider that it can be more or less depending on what I previously mentioned
To be more specific:
Gestating pigs need 3 to 6 gallons of water.
Lactating pigs need 5 to 7 gallons of water.
Finisher pigs(100 to 250 lbs) need 3 to 5 gallons of water.
Grower pigs (60 to 100lbs ) need 2 to 3 gallons of water.
Nursery pigs (0 to 60 lbs) need 0.7 to 1 gallon of water.
Pigs that are suffering from diseases will have to drink more water when compared to healthy pigs. For example, imagine if the pigs have diarrhea it obviously needs to consume more water. For this type of case, it’s important to get in contact with your veterinarian as they will give you more detail on how to help your pig.
For this reason, it is important to always have fresh water available for all your pigs and supervise their behavior. Are they drinking too much, or are they not drinking as this will give you a sense of their overall health.
How Long Can Pigs Go without Water?
As you know by now, fresh water is the most important requirement if you’re looking after your pigs health, as it helps maintain the function of cells, nutrients, removes metabolic waste, and more.
A pig can definitely survive without eating for several days, but a pig should not go without water for no more than 48hours. On a grown pig, water makes up 55% of their body weight, so it’s essential for them to constantly consume water.
If a pig spends too much time without drinking water, he could suffer from many conditions, but one of the most common ones is salt poisoning.
Will Pigs Drink Dirty Water?
Yes, pigs have no restriction when it comes to eating or drinking; they will definitely drink the dirty water, but they will also pee in the water, play in the water, vomit in the water, and after all that, they will drink some more.
For this reason, we must be vigilant, and we should always keep fresh water bowls available at all times; if not, I recommend using an automatic water system that can help you keep the water fresh and clean.
This is essential for their overall health.
Why Do Pigs Pee When They Drink Water?
This is a condition called Psychogenic water consumption, in which the pig will literally drink gallons of water while peeing, and in other cases, they will vomit and then keep drinking.
In this case, you will need to get in contact with the veterinarian as you will need to figure out their water needs and see if they are suffering from some type of sickness.
But I want you to understand this is not a natural behavior, and it can be quite challenging to determine the specific reason for why the pig is doing this.
Do Pigs Drink Their Pee?
There could be a few different reasons why your pig is drinking his pee. You have to consider if this pig has sufficient water available. If not, he will drink his pee as it’s better than nothing, but this is something that you need to correct.
Another reason to consider is that it might have some type of mineral deficiency, and if they think they could compensate for the lack of this mineral by drinking urine, they will do it.
This is another reason why it’s so important to keep your pigs on a balanced diet making sure they are consuming all the proper nutrients they need.
What Do Pigs like to Drink?
Well, I got to start by mentioning water; pigs really like it, it’s healthy for them, and it helps them continue with their daily activities.
Besides water, pigs will drink all types of fruit juice and even coca-cola if they have to; now, this doesn’t mean they should be drinking this type of sugary drink as it can affect their health in a negative way.
So please avoid using this type of drink and stick to only water. If you want to give them something sweet and refreshing, try something more natural like a watermelon; they really love it, and it’s quite juicy.
Do Pigs Drink Alcohol?
I think you know the answer to this: pigs will drink and eat almost anything edible, including alcohol.
So yes, pigs will drink beer and similar drinks as long as they like the taste.
But it’s not recommended that your pigs consume this type of drink, especially if they have alcohol.
It will make your pigs go crazy, and it will affect their health.
Fun fact: Some pigs, after they give birth, will get aggressive and hurt their piglets, so to avoid this, people will give them beer. Yes, they will get the pigs drunk.
I don’t promote this, but it is quite interesting.
Water Quality for Pigs?
As I have been saying throughout this article, pigs need fresh and abundant water at all times. The basic reason for this is that you will avoid sickness among the pig population.
When you don’t change the water of the pigs, you got yourself a recipe for disaster.
Your pigs will get sick, dehydrate and die. If it’s too difficult for you to constantly change their water, please try implementing an automatic watering system. It will help you save time and water. But at the same time, you will provide fresh drinkable water for the pigs.
Do Pigs Drink Water through Their Nose?
Look, pigs will consume water through their mouth; it might seem they are drinking through their nose because they throw themselves in the water bowl, but this is not the case.
Sure, as they breathe, they might get some water in their nose, but this is not the way for them to consume the water.
So the answer is no.
Pigs drink through their mouths.
It’s also important to consider that pigs use their nose to find things and play around; they also like to smell things, so don’t be surprised if they are just trying to figure out the smell of the water.
Conclusion: Do Pigs Drink Water?
Yes, pigs love to drink lots of water, especially during the summer month, it helps them keep hydrated, and it also helps their bodies absorb all the nutrients and vitamins they need in order to survive. Just like we need water, pigs also need to constantly consume water.
There are water systems you can use to keep the water warm during winter, but most importantly, it helps keep the water clean and healthy. So I encourage you to use them.
You don’t want your pigs drinking dirty water, as it promotes diseases and it’s not healthy.
But this water system also helps you save more water, as the pig will only drink what is necessary, and you won’t have to constantly be changing the water because it’s too dirty or because they decided to play inside the water bowl.
Remember that pigs love to be close to water sources, especially during summer, so having a bowl with water in the yard it’s not going to last too long. This is why I recommend using the automated water system.
But more than convenience, it will keep your pigs healthy.
Regarding all the types of drinks pigs can consume, it may be true that they love it but remember, just because your pigs drink alcohol or juice, it doesn’t mean they should be doing that. So I would rather promote what’s healthy for your pigs.
Always keep your pigs on a healthy diet, meaning fresh water, pigs feed, vegetables and fruits. With that, you can go very far.
And for those pigs that don’t like to drink too much water, see if they like eating ice cubes. This can be a great solution for many pig owners; you can mix the ice cubes with carrots or some type of vegetable they like.
This way, they will consume the water they need.
I hope I have answered your question, and if you’re a novice, remember that everything takes time, but I’m sure you will become an expert in caring for pigs.