Chickens scared of new waterer…help!

[jda2581]

Hello! I’m new to the backyard chicken scene. I just got a new waterer that is heated for winter, and my chickens are scared of it! I’ve tried putting meal worms around it and they will get so close and run away. It’s been just over a week. Does anyone have any tips or tricks to help me out?

 

[thecatumbrella]

Can you share a pic of the waterer? What do they normally drink from?

 

[jda2581]

Can you share a pic of the waterer? What do they normally drink from?

The red one is the new heated one, and the blue one is the normal one. I made sure to put the new one in the same place and the feeder hasn’t changed but they won’t eat because it’s too close to the waterer. I added a picture of how it was before I changed the waterer for winter.

 

[thecatumbrella]

That is so weird. How old are your chickens? Are they normally this nervous? You might have to manually dip their beaks so they know it's water, but wait for someone else to chime in. I don't want to traumatize them.

My chickens will be apprehensive about new things, but that normally wears off in a couple hours. For them to be avoiding food and water for a week seems excessive.

One idea is to remove the water from the waterer, dry it out, then put their food in the reservoir. THAT is their only food for the day, and lock them in with it until they eat. Obviously provide their usual water on the side. Hopefully that will knock them out of it, then you can convert it back as their waterer.

 

[jda2581]

I might try that with their food. I put another waterer in there away from it and another thing of food for the time being and they have drank like they’ve never seen water in their life. I feel awful about it! Yes they are very scared of things and idk why! But it’s usually things I put in for them to play with so I just take it out and they’re fine. They’re just reaching laying age. I have one a little older that’s been laying for a couple months and now has stopped and I think it’s because they haven’t drank much. If at all. I only have the 3, 2 were hatched the same time. Thank you for your input!

 

[thecatumbrella]

They absolutely will stop laying eggs if they're not drinking.

Another thought: when I was training mine to use horizontal nipples (for their heated waterer), it was a bit of a struggle. What I did was keep the nipple waterer out 24/7, but only provide cup water in the middle of the day (maybe 12-3?). This obviously might not work due to your schedule, but it's how I got them transitioned without dehydrating them.

I'd definitely try the food trick. They won't starve themselves, and they'll be able to hydrate in the meantine (dehydration would also put them off food).

Best of luck! I know how stubborn they can be.

 

[jda2581]

Thank you! I’m going to try the food trick tomorrow and let them have their water and food today since it’s been so long! Hopefully that will work!

 

[Brooks_]

Could it possibly have a short?

 

[Stephine]

Sometimes if they refuse to use it there’s an electric issue with it and they actually get shocked by the water.

 

[Tonyroo]

I spend some time teaching my young chickens to use new items. By being next to it and tapping my finger where they need to access it and letting some water drip out of it. You just need one to use it and the rest will follow. They learn by repetitive actions and from other chickens.