nipple waterer for chickens?

[aart]

my woodland theme

Is that log resin or concrete?

 

[aart]

Okay thank you! One of the main reasons I wanna switch is because I don’t want her water bowl to freeze over the Winter every 30 minutes!

You'll still have to heat the water.
This is what I rigged for that:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-heated-waterer-with-horizontal-nipples.67256/

I've had all age birds either pick it right up within an hour...and others that take weeks to really figure it out.

Here's my thoughts on 'nipple training'.
First, it's good to know how much water your flock consumes 'normally', I top off water every morning and have marks on the waterers so I know about how much they drink.

Found they drank just as much from the nipples as they did from the open waterer.

-Do not train to nipples during extreme temps when dehydration is more of a risk.

-Show them how with your finger(tho that might just train them to wait for your finger),
and/or manually grab them and push their head/beak onto the trigger(easier with chicks than adults).

-No other water source, best to 'train' during mild weather when dehydration is less of an immediate health risk. I do provide an open waterer late in day to make sure they don't go to roost dehydrated, especially young chicks.

It can take days or weeks to get them fully switched over, just takes observation, consistency, and patience.

 

[K0k0shka]

Is that log resin or concrete?

Polyurethane. I sealed the inside with food grade silicone. Been using it for over a year now, and no problems. The chickens don’t peck at the foam at all, which surprised me. I thought they’d rip it up. It’s a very hard foam though.

 

[HSNEK]

It was

It was this one - a proper waterer I bought that had everything installed the way it should be. It let the water out just fine. In fact, it even leaked a little, which was annoying. So it wasn't a vacuum issue. It's just an awkward thing to drink from, I guess, and I don't feel strongly enough about it to keep pushing it, so I gave in and let them have an open waterer.
View attachment 2820462

This is the exact model I have and I'm having the same issues. I can't get the birds to drink from this. I almost wonder if the 'silver' part should be red. If my 4-week old chicks see water dripping, they will drink it, but they won't push in the silver button. I've tried 3 times, all day, but afraid I'm hurting the chicks, because as soon as I bring in the old water bowl, the chicks start drinking like crazy. And my temps are not hot and the chicks are not in the sun.

 

[K0k0shka]

This is the exact model I have and I'm having the same issues. I can't get the birds to drink from this. I almost wonder if the 'silver' part should be red. If my 4-week old chicks see water dripping, they will drink it, but they won't push in the silver button. I've tried 3 times, all day, but afraid I'm hurting the chicks, because as soon as I bring in the old water bowl, the chicks start drinking like crazy. And my temps are not hot and the chicks are not in the sun.

I gave up on the nipples a year and a half ago. I don’t regret it one bit. I use a heated dog bowl in the winter and a regular bowl the rest of the year and it works fine. It’s outside, so I don’t have to worry about the coop getting wet. I know some people love the nipples, I’m just not one of them.

 

[3KillerBs]

This is the exact model I have and I'm having the same issues. I can't get the birds to drink from this. I almost wonder if the 'silver' part should be red. If my 4-week old chicks see water dripping, they will drink it, but they won't push in the silver button. I've tried 3 times, all day, but afraid I'm hurting the chicks, because as soon as I bring in the old water bowl, the chicks start drinking like crazy. And my temps are not hot and the chicks are not in the sun.

They may need to be a little bigger to trigger the nipples depending on how stiff said nipples are.

You can mark the water level to see if they're managing to drink when you don't see them doing it.

I find that any time I offer open water my chickens rush for it -- even though they always drink from the nipples.

 

[aart]

I find that any time I offer open water my chickens rush for it -- even though they always drink from the nipples.

Same here, it's not an indicator of them not getting enough from the nipples.

 

[K0k0shka]

Same here, it's not an indicator of them not getting enough from the nipples.

Mine rush the most when I spill/pour water on the ground You’d think I kept them parched all week. And they don’t even have nipples as an excuse.

 

[JNC]

I gave up on the nipples a year and a half ago. I don’t regret it one bit. I use a heated dog bowl in the winter and a regular bowl the rest of the year and it works fine. It’s outside, so I don’t have to worry about the coop getting wet. I know some people love the nipples, I’m just not one of them.

what heated water bowl did you get? I’m thinking of getting one.

 

[K0k0shka]

what heated water bowl did you get? I’m thinking of getting one.

I had this one last winter and it worked great:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B0053H89SA/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Upgraded to the larger size for this winter, since my flock has grown:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002DHBQQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1