chickens won't drink

[kellycyndic]

Hi my name is Cyndi and I am new here.We are also new to raising chickens and I have so many questions. These chickens are stressing me out. My most concern right now is I can not get them to drink. I have 11 Rhode Island Reds and they have been drinking out of the plastic hanging water container,it is so hot them kept tipping it and running out of water,so we got the rubber water bowls( suggested on here)and added them for about 1 month with the hanging ones. The chickens would not go near them so today we took the hanging ones out and just left the rubber ones. They will not drink they are panting and very hot but still refuse to drink. What do we do

 

[sourland]

You may like to start a new thread with an introduction about your chicks and anything else you would like to share including pictures.

Great suggestion. OP has not been on site in nearly 8 years.

 

[Oatmealmama]

They have a big fenced in yard, that is covered with wire as well and I have half of it with a tarp so they have shade. The bowls are to big to hang. I guess I am just going to hang their waterers back out. They are so set in their ways. They do not like anything new.

I am going through the same. We have our waterer on a paving stone to keep it cleaner and it is not as easy for thrm to tip over. However suddenly our chicks (7 weeks old) are refusing their "magic water".

 

[LTAY1946]

I am going through the same. We have our waterer on a paving stone to keep it cleaner and it is not as easy for thrm to tip over. However suddenly our chicks (7 weeks old) are refusing their "magic water".

You may like to start a new thread with an introduction about your chicks and anything else you would like to share including pictures.

 

[kellycyndic]

Thank you. I am going to put the hanging ones back up. I feel like you do it is not worth them getting sick or dying over.have enough going on with them.

 

[the poppster]

The comment about the birds not liking anything new...I change things around all the time in my chicken run...I add old chairs..or benches...a old hollow stump...a wheel barrow....little red wagon.. I have a couple of unbreakable mirrors hanging in there...along with a nice wind chime....they are curious by nature...the more variety in their little world the better for them...in my book anyway...it will break them of the fear of the new...they will start to look forward to any New change....I put something new in my run now and they crowd around it, to check it out...before long they are exploring the new thing...in their natural environment NEW is the NORM. Start slowly and small...Make the change tasty...

 

[the poppster]

We just didn't want to make the change while it was hot.  We are using buckets that we're attaching the nipples to and they're supposed to keep the water cleaner.  I think we'll keep the old fashioned kind IN the coop this winter since it won't drip, but I want some outside for them...at the height of winter, they may freeze solid before we can swap them out so we might have to come up with a heater of some sort for the outside water.

I took and old metal fuse box....got a waterproof trouble light....cut the hole that the wire goes through to fit the fixture of the trouble light..secured the light fixture in the hole...so no water or dust can get into the fuse box....put a 40 watt light bulb in the fixture...shut the fuse box door... set the fuse box on a couple pieces of 2x2 to keep it off the floor and put my metal waterer on it...it keeps the water from freezing in all but the coldest weather...it's inside the coop....I do check every day when I change the water to be sure the bulb hasn't burnt out....

 

[drumstick diva]

It's not worth the battle when your chickens can die from dehydration and the heat. For now use the old waterer for them. While some of the greeters can help your brainstorm a better way.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Can you put a carabiner clip and chain on the top of it and connect it to the ceiling so it cannot be tipped? I had to do that with a waterer once to keep them from roosting on top of it. It was resting on the ground still, but "connected" to the ceiling.

 

[kellycyndic]

They have a big fenced in yard, that is covered with wire as well and I have half of it with a tarp so they have shade. The bowls are to big to hang. I guess I am just going to hang their waterers back out. They are so set in their ways. They do not like anything new.