Livestock Water Calculator

This tool uses about 12 gallons per day for beef cattle and 30 for lactating dairy cattle as planning figures. Actual intake rises with heat, lactation, dry feed and body size, so treat these as a baseline.

Typical rates are included for beef cattle (12), dairy cattle (30), horses (10), sheep (2), goats (2), pigs (5) and chickens (0.05), all in gallons per head per day. For anything else, enter your own custom rate.

Type any positive number in the Custom rate field and it overrides the selected animal type. The dropdown is dimmed while a custom rate is active, so the figure you typed is exactly what feeds the totals.

Daily use is the head count times the per-head rate. The total multiplies that daily use by the number of days, which is handy for sizing storage or planning a delivery.

No. The defaults are mild-weather planning estimates. Water intake can roughly double in heat, so add a generous margin when you size troughs and storage.

Everything is in US gallons per head per day, and totals are shown in gallons rounded to two decimals. There is no metric mode, so convert to liters separately if you need it (1 US gallon is about 3.785 liters).

Not in a single run. Calculate each group separately with its own rate, then add the daily and total gallons together, or enter a blended custom rate if you know the herd average.

No. They are general planning aids only. For precise needs, follow guidance from your veterinarian, nutritionist or local extension service.

No. The calculation runs entirely in your browser and nothing about your herd is sent anywhere.