Drip waterers

[kristenm1975]

I'm not sure if that's what these are called, but I'm thinking of putting those waterers with the nipples in for my older pullets (two weeks) to help keep the water clean for longer. My concern is that they have been used to the regular kind where they just dip their beaks in and drink and I don't want them to die of thirst when there's water right there for them.

How do you teach them to drink out of those things? Is this age too young to catch on? And does anyone know how much water chicks this age should be getting each day? I was thinking about installing two 48oz waterers for 14 chicks.

Thanks for any advice!

 

[Southernbelle]

They catch on REALLY fast - you poke a new shiny object in the pen and within 0.004 seconds someone checks it out and makes it work, which brings all the others to investigate. Investigation conclusion is that water comes out and water is good.

 

[granmahen]

Mine caught on right away. I switched to the waterers you use with hamsters and such, placed the chicks right under the spout and squeezed a little. They grabbed the first drop and were off. This is after two weeks of cleaning up after the regular kind which always got dirty, tipped over or just wicked the water into the bedding. Hallelujah for bottle waterers.

 

[kristenm1975]

Oh excellent! I'm off to the pet store to pick up a couple then!

Now if I can just switch over to the same system for my big girls. They end up drinking poo half of the time because even though I swish, rinse and refill their waterer nearly nightly, it's still ALWAYS mucky.

I've rigged my brooder up to have doors on either end and it should be simple to just install the bottle waterers into the doors.

Thanks!

 

[Sequin]

This is Brilliant!! I was wondering if it would work with bottle waterers... now I know and I am going to try it! I feel awful when I get home from work and there are shaving soaking up the chick's water!!!! *runs to pet store*

 

[GracefulBantams]

I've raised my current batch of chicks almost completely on the "rabbit/small animal" waterer, and they all caught on the first few hours

Just hold each one and tap its beak to the nozle.

 

[Whispering Winds]

I just saw these on a site I was surfing, and I think they were $20 for 5 of them . . .it showed a honey bottle they were using, and I wonder how many ounces this is? Would like a hard plastic vinegar jug work, or something of this nature work? they didn't have too many pictures, so I need some help here. I use this type for our mice, rats, hamsters, and rabbits and they are the easiest by far, but small ones would keep me running all day keeping them full . . . unless I had several hanging, and then it would become a chore to do, not fun like I want it to be, or at least enjoyable . . .and then I guess in the winter, I would have to go back to something else with a warmer?

 

[echlfan]

I got this water bottle. I love being able to refill it without removing it.

 

[Akane]

You don't have to teach them. I couldn't grab the camera fast enough to take pics as they figured it out the first time I put the bottle in. Then I put one in for newly hatched chicks along with a dish near it thinking they'd use the dish first and eventually find the water bottle. Nope. I hadn't even shown them the water and one pecks at the shiny ball and water droplet at the end. They preferred the bottle and figured it out faster than a normal waterer.

 

[granmahen]

Quote:
I'm experimenting with using a 2 liter soda bottle and large waterer top for my turkey and it works great. Got mine at the local feed store but maybe pet stores have them too. I'd guess one for every three or four hens. I'm thinking of switching out my 5 hens' 5gal. bucket system this year. It's just so nasty. I'd rather keep refilling soda bottles.