Untreated Dug Well Water

[JaneyJ82]

We run our water through a softener and everything here drinks it but us humans, we also have a reverse osmosis system too. I even water my gardens, house plants and keep aquarium fish. Use your soften water, your chickens will be fine.

Otherwise your other well would probably be fine too. Mine drink out of all kinds of dirty puddles despite me giving them fresh clean water.

Thanks so much for the advice

 

[JaneyJ82]

Except for chasing cars, chickens are very much like dogs. They happily drink out of mud holes, usually without any ill effects.

Your hand dug well is fine. In the past I raised 1,000s of 100% free range chickens on dug well water, I even had to draw the water by hand. Spoiled or contaminated feed is a much, much, much, greater danger.

Thanks for the info - I hand draw the water from the dug well too, though we are going to install a pump jack just to make it a tad easier on the back

 

[JaneyJ82]

View attachment 1040835 All our wells are hand dug, or rain water. The rain water tested can still have e.coli in it, due to birdie doo on the roof.the hand dug wells are about 10 to 16 foot deep and do have coliform bacteria but so far not e.coli.
I dislike chlorine, too.but under the circumstances, there is nothing else that will effectively kill coliform bacteria.
The recipe sent to me by the avian doctors is widely used in commercial houses and by many many professional growers.
It also does no harm, and is just about the same amount of chlorine we humans drink, and is less chlorine than used by municipal water treatment plants.
The birds DO drink out of every ditch, filled with poo or not, but for some reason unknown to me, and only known to the avian doctors, this recipe works and did save the rest of the birds in my flock that were dying of e.coli.
I have tried to upload a few papers published by Avian Docs, and so far the links are not working here..sorry.

Thanks for this info - I know my parents often "shock" their well and this sounds like a similar approach

 

[Chickielady]

My free-range birds drink from pools that are surely exposed to coliform bacteria. It appears their immune systems are generally up to task of fighting off infections. With penned birds, I do give more consideration to as they are confined which may challenge immune systems.

This is more than likely true, as our own immunal systems are constructed, we can each tollerate so many outside bacterias, fungi and viruses' at the same time, then along comes the straw that breaks the camel's back, so to speak.
I copy/scanned the paper published by our avian pathologists, and this is the one they referred to me with the recipe for clorination.
Remember, when it happened to me, it was about 3/4 of a healthy flock of BCM's.
I also had ajoining flocks, who were not ill at all, but I gave them antibiotics also, trying to stop whatever this 'infection ' was...
The BCMs got listless, stopped eating in some cases, started sneezing & could hardly breathe & had "pump handle respiration" indicative of air sacculitis.
I gave then clean water daily with Oxytetracycline....but it was well water, and unchlorinated.
I tried Denagard, I tried 5 or 5 other antibiotics.
None worked, and birds were dying.
Here I was, giving them something that was making them sick in the first place.
Once their immunal systems are drug down thus far, other oppurtunistic bacterias can walk right in & settle down unhendered.....anyways, read this paper if you can, it is super informative !
So, the birds can tolerate so much bacteria just as we can, and then they get very sick, and die quickly.
Here is the paper, was 6 pages but page 5 was a big photo of a necropsy...so I did not copy it.

 

[Chickielady]

You will need to blow up these images to read them, but it is fascinating.
I also want to admit I get lazy from time to time and give them straight water without adding any extra chlorine, as we have our wells on a super filtration system, UV sterilzers, and a Dosatron adds appropriate chlorine to the water as it flows.
I used to fill old milk jogs and add the recipe's amount of chlorine, but do not have to anylonger.

 

[JaneyJ82]

You will need to blow up these images to read them, but it is fascinating.
I also want to admit I get lazy from time to time and give them straight water without adding any extra chlorine, as we have our wells on a super filtration system, UV sterilzers, and a Dosatron adds appropriate chlorine to the water as it flows.
I used to fill old milk jogs and add the recipe's amount of chlorine, but do not have to anylonger.

Thank you so much for all of this information! I appreciate it

 

[Chickielady]

Welcome.and remember that the sun will kill all chlorine in any water you put out for the birds....Always store the "solution" and any chlorox bottles in a shaded area, this is why it comes in a white bottle (or way back in the day chlorox came in a brown glass jug)
I try to keep my bird's water in a shady area....helps keep it 'clean' of bacteria and viruses longer than if it were in the sun.

 

[Chaerie]

I have a question regarding this, we also have 2 wells, both negative for coliform bacteria, tested last Sept. I've been hauling RO water for the chickens, which is a complete pain in the rear. We have 3 alternatives, I can give softened water from well 1 which has trace amounts of arsenic, untreated water from well 1 which has quite a lot of iron and trace amounts of arsenic, or untreated water from well 2 which has less particles and no arsenic but is quite a ways downhill. Again, both wells have tested recently, both negative for coliform. Thanks!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I have a question regarding this, we also have 2 wells, both negative for coliform bacteria, tested last Sept. I've been hauling RO water for the chickens, which is a complete pain in the rear. We have 3 alternatives, I can give softened water from well 1 which has trace amounts of arsenic, untreated water from well 1 which has quite a lot of iron and trace amounts of arsenic, or untreated water from well 2 which has less particles and no arsenic but is quite a ways downhill. Again, both wells have tested recently, both negative for coliform. Thanks!

I don't know a lot about the arsenic, which is a natural occurring contaminant. I read as likely my as it's below 10 ppm it is safe for humans, so it can depends what low is. My chickens get softened water, I see no affect from it's use. We also give it to everything, goats, donkeys, turkeys, fish, plants, and my dogs.

 

[Chaerie]

I don't know a lot about the arsenic, which is a natural occurring contaminant. I read as likely my as it's below 10 ppm it is safe for humans, so it can depends what low is. My chickens get softened water, I see no affect from it's use. We also give it to everything, goats, donkeys, turkeys, fish, plants, and my dogs.

Arsenic 20 ppm when tested last Sept. We only drink RO water. My inclination is to do bottom well but I don't know how the well will perform going uphill...