anyone ever used a rabbit waterer?

[HennysMom]

Okay, I dont know if I'm calling it the right thing or not but I've seen a waterer for a chicken that looks like something you'd use for a rabbit or hamster. It keeps the water clean and the birds are supposed to "hit" the little ball or something to get water out?

I'm looking for something for the summer for short interim weekend trips that would keep their water clean if we wanted to go away for a day or 2 (Fri-Sat) w/out having to worry about someone watering/feeding them (unless it got really hot, then they'd change the water out for fresh clean cold water). Right now we hire "chicken sitters" (okay..no laughing LOL!

) to come and give them fresh feed and water, as well as get the eggs whenever we go away, so something that would help alleviate this if we wanted to just run out for a Fri-Sat would be great. someone could still come over to get the eggs of course.

It would also be helpful to have that waterer just in general because my girls are always getting their water dirty (we use the galvanized waterer) when they dust bathe. Any other ideas along the same principle as this that anyone has, I'm open to.

Thanks in advance! (and where would I find one of these if they do work?)

 

[kinnip]

I've used one. They figured it out within minutes. I have only two complaints. I put it in the brooder with them, so they would learn early. They clicked on little ball ALL night and it's louder than you'd think. They'd click that ball even when it was empty and there was a full conventional waterer sitting right next to it. They just love that clack sound. The other problem I had, and this was the deal breaker, was keeping it mounted to the wall. The hanger that came with it was a real piece and I just never got around to thinking up something new. They finally stopped spilling all their water, so it really isn't needed any more.

 

[HennysMom]

hey Kinnip ..where ya been? Good to see you..

Awe man... you couldnt keep it mounted? Crud..thats a deal breaker for me then because I have to have it mounted on the fencing

right now their waterer sits on a cinder block to keep it up higher and they still get dirt in it. Hmmm.... I wonder if one could make a mounting device made out of PVC pipe or something?

How big is the bottle? how much does it hold? My girls drink a TON of water a day (only have 6) and they will drink on average about 1/2 a gallon a day from what I've measured.

 

[Southernbelle]

They figured it out immediately! You hang something new in the brooder - something shiny - of course they're going to come over and investigate and when one investigates, so do the rest!

My brooder was a 4x4' square and I took some hardware cloth and stapled it to across a corner of the brooder, closing it off. I put the water bottle in the corner with the spout sticking out of the hardware cloth, so they couldn't climb on the water bottle.

I LOVED the water bottle - so much cleaner and less waste. Sometimes when they're drinking, they couldn't get all the water in their beak and it would drip onto the shavings, but not much. I brooded this batch downstairs in a spare room, so I didn't notice a noise problem.

 

[windtryst]

My chicks used it when they were in the brooder, and still use them! You can hang more than one on your wire, mine hold about a quart! I use them along with the rubber buckets for water.

 

[Momo]

I use these in the run, hanging from the hardware cloth, and they're great. I've never had a problem with them coming loose.

 

[Sunny the Hippie Chick]

I use them with my button quail. .Didnt take long for them to learn to use it.. I got tired of them spilling their water..

 

[Akane]

I use water bottles with all my chicks and chickens inside and my quail. With this last batch of chicks I put in a water bottle and then a dish of water thinking they could drink that until they got used to the bottle. First chick to drink water pecked the shiny tube and all the others copied. They pick up drinking out of a bottle easier than they do a container. My adults and quail are the same. Put a water bottle in and within minutes they are drinking from it. I don't use bottles in the coop because my chickens drink about a gallon a day when it's not really hot out so it would take alot of bottles and alot more effort than just dumping water in a bucket or refilling a normal waterer. They also freeze here 4months or more out of the year.

 

[Zoomom]

That's a great idea. I have a bunch of nice glass rabbit water bottles in my shed. I can even wash them in the dishwasher, lol. When I get my pullets...have to still build a coop and convince hubby we can't live without the fresh eggs we have been buying from a friend.