How clean does the water have to be? Give it to me straight!

[Rebekah]

I've discovered that my chickens are absolute savages who care nothing for the cleanliness of their environment. I finally found a pretty good solution in a hanging rabbit feeder to keep their food clean [though it gets thrown all over the run... and I'm satisfied with that], but I've been driving myself crazy over keeping their water clean. No matter what I've tried, the little buggers get dirt, litter, and the occasional poo in their waterer.

My question is:

How clean does their water REALLY have to be? I've been changing it several times a day, but this really isn't realistic considering we travel a lot and I refuse to pay someone to come over five times a day to change their water. I also use raw ACV in the water, and I don't want to waste it.

I've read that chickens will drink from mud puddles in their runs [that I'm sure are filled with poo as well], so is it dangerous for their waterer to get dirty and let them drink from it? I know from having cats, that what is recommended for their care and what is practical is completely different. For example, according to the books I'm supposed to have a litter box on every floor of my four story house, but we've been doing fine with one in the basement for years.

Also, I've been using the rain barrel water to fill their waterer. Is this ok? The water is clear and smells fine and with all the rain we've been having, it doesn't sit for long. It's also a store-bought barrel with a screen, so very little debris gets in.

I need practical answers here from experienced chicken owners... I have a feeling my current sterile environment is not necessary for my very dirty chickens

 

[Judy]

I change water once or twice a day. It is high enough that they have to reach up just a bit to get to it, and it is fixed so they cannot stand on top of the waterer. They mostly get debris from feed on their beaks in it, but they still manage to get poo and litter in it, too. I use well water and put either ACV or a drop of bleach in it, which keeps algae to a minimum. I see nothing wrong with rain water -- might even be cleaner than well or city water.

I have watched my birds bypass clean, fresh water to drink from a mud puddle.

Clean is great -- but not feasible 24/7.

 

[NYREDS]

Untill a couple of years ago I had a flock of registered Tunis sheep & some Alpine goats.
When it would rain for several days a dark brown "water" would run out of the barnyard. The chickens would drink this "water" w/o any apparent ill effect.
I think you can relax a little & still be ok.

 

[TeriNick50]

I read somewhere in these forums that you can "kill your chickens with kindness." I believe it! We change their water once a day - usually in the morning. Our chicks are 5 weeks old ... all happy, healthy and content.

 

[PattiXmas]

I always ask my kids "Would you drink that water?".

 

[Rebekah]

Thanks everyone...

I can't imagine all those healthy chicken owners, many of which have jobs that take them away all day, are out making sure the water is clean on an hourly basis. I happen to work from home and have the coop 10 feet from my back door, so I obsess a little.

 

[Chicksdigit]

I have a 5 gallon waterer and I put a little clorox in the water and change it every other day and they are doing great...... I've been doing this for months...their waterer sits on an overturned plastic ice chest so they have to reach up a little to get to it but it keeps most of the dirt and dust they scratch around in ...out.

 

[Chicksdigit]

I remember long ago when I was a kid my grandmother had several car tires sliced in half and they watered their chickens with these.

This was not so long after the depression and they had an outhouse and you had to keep the boards up around the bottom or the chickens would be getting into that.

 

[trilyn]

Quote:
Hi there, why don't you check out my waterer on my byc page. I t might give you an idea for clean water. I had the same problem and did a little research and this is what I've come up with using some ideas from the web. Hope it helps!

 

[Puck-Puck]

What works for me, keeping most debris out and pretty much all poo, is this: take a 2 litre/2 quart pop bottle, cut a hole through the side of the lid and through the side of the threads so the holes line up (holes not too small; enlarge them if it doesn't work). Fill and cap bottle, and invert (with thumb over hole to avoid squirting) over the cut-off bottom of a yogurt tub or some such thing which is about the same diameter as the pop bottle--this is the key. Between the top of the cup and the shoulders of the bottle, there is just room for them to get their heads in, but not their bums. Put the whole effort above the level of their bedding; it can be up to the height of the smallest bird's back, they say, and secure in a vertical position with whatever you have handy. I only change the water once a day, as the cup stays clean, and 2 litres lasts my thirteen birds for 24 hours even in summer. If you have more or thirstier birds, I'd say make a second waterer like this, rather than try to make a larger one of the same style, lest they be able to get their bums over it!

ETA: My healthy birds consumed inestimable amounts of pooey water before I figured this system out--more for my peace of mind than theirs, it seems!