PVC poultry nipples

[cl4275]

I received 3 Golden Comet hens that are 2 years old. They were watered from a bowl and when I got them I leaned them toward the poultry nipples. It took a couple of days for all 3 to catch on. My question though is that if I let them outside to free range, I close off the coop and let the chicks out to play around, so the adult ones have no water due to the system being inside the coop. Well one day as soon as I let the hens outside the coop I set a bucket of water down for them and they drank a bunch, so how do I know if they are drinking enough water from the poultry nipples? I’d hate to dehydrate them if they don’t drink enough from them.

 

[blackdog043]

What kind of nipples are you using?
I would just watch the water level in your waterer. FYI, if your using vertical nipples and you get below freezing temps, they will freeze, even with a heater inside your waterer.

If you add you general location to your profile, it will always show at your avatar. This will get you better answers, to questions related to your climate.

 

[cl4275]

What kind of nipples are you using?
I would just watch the water level in your waterer. FYI, if your using vertical nipples and you get below freezing temps, they will freeze, even with a heater inside your waterer.

If you add you general location to your profile, it will always show at your avatar. This will get you better answers, to questions related to your climate.

I will change that here in just a minute! I am in east Texas, so below freezing is few and far between. I am using vertical.

I was having to put about 1/4-1/2 gallon every day to keep it full. It just confused me how when I put the old water out there sat there and chugged it. So it just concerned me.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Order the horizontal if possible you can buy several off amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Automatic-Ch...refix=water+nipples,aps,289&sr=8-5&ref=sr_1_5

 

[snow5164]

Forget the nipples all together ,
A few years ago I was sitting in my coop and I witnessed the same thing , big gulps of water from the pan of water I gave them . I had a 5 gallon bucket with nipples hanging under it ... they seemed to be standing by it all day but I never realized why TIL that day .

It’s like us drinking from a straw or a cup , when we’re thirsty a big gulp is much more refreshing....I sold my nipple buckets that week .

I bought 3 of these one for each flock and raised them up on bricks , I’ve never regretted it. Sure they kick in feathers or whatever , I change it and clean it twice a week.


Nipples are another example of people wanting raising animals to be easy. Think about the birds using them , you saw what I witnessed years ago

 

[cl4275]

Forget the nipples all together ,
A few years ago I was sitting in my coop and I witnessed the same thing , big gulps of water from the pan of water I gave them . I had a 5 gallon bucket with nipples hanging under it ... they seemed to be standing by it all day but I never realized why TIL that day .

It’s like us drinking from a straw or a cup , when we’re thirsty a big gulp is much more refreshing....I sold my nipple buckets that week .

I bought 3 of these one for each flock and raised them up on bricks , I’ve never regretted it. Sure they kick in feathers or whatever , I change it and clean it twice a week.


Nipples are another example of people wanting raising animals to be easy. Think about the birds using them , you saw what I witnessed years ago

View attachment 1538932

I have the PVC nipple system still available to them but now I have a very similar water bucket like that and I have to refill it every 1.5 days. They really stopped drinking from the nipple system but no need to take it down if its already installed and not in the way. One of the nipples had a slow leak the other day and when i had my 6 week old pullets out in the coop by themselves, they noticed it and it was funny watching them jump for it and barely touching them!! (That system was not meant for them yet, they have their own small waterers.)

Thank yall for the insite! I will probably just stick with the jugs i have for now on based on how fast they drink it.

 

[blackdog043]

I was having to put about 1/4-1/2 gallon every day to keep it full. It just confused me how when I put the old water out there sat there and chugged it. So it just concerned me.

Mine are so used to the horizontal nipples now, they hardly use a pan of water, if I offer it to them outside the coop/run. They just go back inside for a drink from the nipples.

 

[cl4275]

Mine are so used to the horizontal nipples now, they hardly use a pan of water, if I offer it to them outside the coop/run. They just go back inside for a drink from the nipples.

Im not sure horizontal will work on the PVC. I would have to keep it full at all times the way the outside system is set up. The inside PVC system would probably work but I've only seen them drink from it a handful of times. Definitely good information for my next coop though!

 

[Lorimary]

The best system I have found so far is: http://bit.ly/1uAC83l. The water stays clean and temperate even in weather extremes, short of a long freeze. Each time I start a new batch of hens, they master it in a few days by watching the other girls. I leave a pan of water until I see them all drinking. Chickens like to play around by water, and will drink from a puddle with great glee, which does not mean they are not getting enough water from the nipples.
You can buy any cooler with a tap, unscrew the tap, and insert the nipple tap, so that you can adjust the size cooler you choose. I have 11 hens at the moment, and a 2 gallon cooler is enough for 4-5 days.

 

[aart]

They drink just as much from nipples as an open waterer.

I measured, because I had also had concerns.
Measured daily consumption for a couple weeks before switching to nipples,
kept tabs on daily consumption and it was the same once they got used to the nipples,
took a couple weeks...some of them just didn't 'get it' at first.

Yes... they will drink more deeply out of puddles, sip drops of rain off run mesh, even eat snow......doesn't mean they are dehydrated because of the nipples.