Arizona Chickens

[Tonopah Pati]

I am in Tonopah Arizona. I am new to chickens in the desert. I have 7 babier, 1 rooster and 2 laying hens.
I have used several different waters and the automatic is the only way to go. I hose my run a little each day, my chicks all love it. I am now growing a box of grass in the run, I can't wait until it is tall enough for them to eat.

 

[Sock Puppet]

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Welcome

I agree with the automatic waters. Cant wait to do that.

 

[Sock Puppet]

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Im glad to know that. Ive seen their listing on craigslist. And thought about checking it out.

Thanks for letting us know.

 

[ArizonaNessa]

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Welcome

I agree with the automatic waters. Cant wait to do that.

If anyone is handy with a drill and interested PM me and I can explain how I make my own automatic waterers. Its pretty neat actually.

 

[H2OKarensa]

My Chicken-luvin' DH made me an automatic waterer out of an oil pan and a swamp cooler float valve. Here are my hens enjoying the regular water.

 

[cozycritters]

I'm in Tucson-- we just make sure we give them plenty of water and shade and they're just fine. I have noticed that when it gets hot they dig holes in damp ground near the garden and take a mud bath

 

[RioLindoAz]

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Mine do the same!

They all dig in the same area until they get a deap hole were they can all fit. They have no problems with heat at all. I only use the misters when its completely necessary . Also, on the really hot days, I put electrolytes in their water.

 

[ArizonaNessa]

Ok I am going to attempt to upload a pic to show my auto waterer. Praying it works. Its just standard drain pipe and we used a hole saw to cut the holes. the T on the end is for stability and the other end has a cooler float in it. The end caps are not glued on and once a week I pop them off to clean out any chips but no more poopy water. YAY!!!

 

[ArizonaNessa]

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A cooler float is the float that is used in the evaporative coolers to regulate the water level. It is a small rectanguler plastic box attached to a metal rod. It is the exact same thing as the float in the back of your toilet but only on a much smaller scale. Works the same way though.

 

[ArizonaNessa]

Wonderful! You can change it to suit your needs. There is no set rules for it and I have played around with the size of the holes too. I use 2-3 inch for the little guys or bantams and I use 4 inch for the big birds. Use your imagination and have fun