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

[Andora]

I use rabbit waterers. At TSC they sell at 64 ounce one. You can hang it on the outside of the run with the metal spout poking inward to the chickens. It's so easy to refil, and always clean, doesn't waste the ACV either. My chickens love to peck at it.

As soon as I set up a duck pool however, they abandoned all water that I tried to set out and insist on drinking the chocolate colored duck water.

They also love to drink from puddles and from the rain gutter spout.

 

[steffpeck]

Quote:
I would like to see pictures of your setup.

 

[Mrs. Glassman]

Quote:
I would like to see pictures of your setup.

Yes! Pictures please! I have the same problem. I don't see how they can drink poo water, of course....I've seen them eat fresh POO

 

[bluemoonluck]

Quote:
Do you use the ball kind or the pin kind? I raise rabbits, and I have lots of extra water bottles that I keep on hand for them... but they are all the ball type. I never even thought about using those for the chickens.....Thanks!

 

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

Although I just bought them a 5 gal waterer, they prefer to drink out of the duck tub...so do my dogs

 

[Dixiedoodle]

I have two vessels with water for my chickens. One is a metal 'chicken waterer, the other one is a tub lid that's maybe 3" deep.. They stand in it, I am sure they poo in it and kick dirt in it. They drink out of this one more than the metal one.. I offer clean fresh water twice a day..

 

[mrbstephens]

I have a small waterer inside the hen house that I add ACV to and a 2 gallon galvanized waterer that I keep in the run. If I see bedding or dirt in either one of them. I dump out the dirty water and let the waterer refill itself. I'll do this a couple of times until the water looks clean. I get them fresh water every other day or so. Actually when I dump the water on the ground in the run they really seem to prefer drinking the water in the little puddle it made. Like it's a treat.

 

[EweSheep]

Mrs. Glassman :

Quote:
I would like to see pictures of your setup.

Yes! Pictures please! I have the same problem. I don't see how they can drink poo water, of course....I've seen them eat fresh POO

Me ,three!

 

[cgmccary]

I have noticed my chickens love to drink water from the dirty puddles in the run after it rains with no ill effect. They always do this. However, I keep 2 + 3 gallon waterers which I change every 2-3 days unless there are supplements in the water (then daily)-- I have 6 such waterers. I have them as high as their backs sitting on several of those round, flat garden stones you use to make a pathway-- this keeps them from getting a lot of debris kicked in them,

 

[Big Chicken Little]

I use a 3gal hanging waterer...they can not sit on top so no poo water. I hang it about 10 inches from the ground ...works great!