They Will Not Drink From Nipples

[BoltonChicken]

I went out there a few days with pans of water and they stampeeded over to them and gulped down water.

Yes, this is what will happen every time. As I stated prior, if they are offered pools of water their inclination is to go to that source, and they will ignore the nipples.

As the other poster said, if you left them for a week without pan water and they survived, they are getting water from the nipples, rest assured.​

 

[speedy2020]

Quote:
Here is a suggestion that you can try. How about tie a cup underneath the nipple (about 1.5-2") and place some water in the cup for a day or two as bait? If you notice your chickens begin to drink from it, then just remove the temporary cup.

 

[krissteff]

Quote:
This happened with one of my nipple waterers.

When I refill my nipple waterers, I always hang it and then tap the nipples real fast so the chickens see me doing it. they hear the noise, see the water and all run over to get some.
I still offer them a bowl of water that's been frozen with a piece of watermelon rind in it. That keeps them very busy as the ice melts and exposes the watermelon, and it's just an extra measure to keep them hydrated when the temperature is so high.

 

[SweetSarah]

I switched to the cup style water system like thompsonfarm suggested - they have worked brilliantly. My chickens seem to be drinking enough water and staying hydrated and I no longer am setting out bowls of water to make sure they survive. Thank you all for helping me out!

 

[chicken_noob]

Glad you got your gals to drink. I have yet to try nipples or the cups but I heard once that you can paint the nipple part bright shiney red with maybe nail polish and they may give it a peck or two to get em started.