Using nipple waterer system for peafowl?

[blondie34]

Hi all - I have a nipple watering system in our poultry barn for my peafowl to use but I never see them use it. More often then not I catch them drinking out of dirty puddles, the duck pond, etc. This led me to put a 5 gal waterer in their run/flight pen since I was worried about them drinking dirty water out of the pond and all that.. now I catch them using the waterer in the run but still have yet to see them use the pvc nipple waterer in the barn. Is it a lost cause? My chickens and even ducks use nipple watering systems fine.. I would think the peafowl would catch on quick but I'm kind of at a loss right now..

Has anyone had success getting peafowl to use this type of waterer? If so do you have any tips?

 

[DylansMom]

If started from chicks they would probably use it just fine, however I tried changing my watering set up and they refused to use the new stuff, so I went back to buckets.

 

[Garden Peas]

I bought all the bits to make one a couple years ago, then stalled out when I figured out I would still have to run it from a bucket rather than hooking it up to a pressurized hose/fresh water supply line. I think my peas would have used it, because I saw them drinking water "drips" off the wire pen enclosure when I sprayed water on the plants next to the pen. They seemed to like collecting the little droplets dangling from the wire.

One thing I hadn't figured out though, was the height to use. I figured I was going to have to experiment to see what height they liked. Also, I understand that the pressure on the nozzle can affect how easily it dispenses water -- a big reason I was going to need to use a bucket rather than a pressurized line. (Yes, I do know there are pressure reducers, but the pressure on these nipple waterers, to be effective, is in the low range of 1 - 2 feet, which is a really big reduction from house pressure here.) I wanted to use the pressurized line so the water would stay clean and I didn't have to scrub buckets.

I also think it makes a difference (or it may make a difference) which nipple system you use -- the vertical nipples or the little bowl nipples. I seem to recall @DylansMom (do I have this right?) was using the little bowl ones, and the peas would never operate the little toggle to get the water into the bowl. I bought the vertical nipples because the dust and dirt problems in my area would have instantly filled the little bowls with mud or caked clay -- not an improvement over the constant mud caking in their regular waterers. (Then there's the whole other issue of keeping it from freezing here...)

I actually think if you used vertical nipples and somehow got them to drip (at least initially), and you took away the other water source for a day or so, they would work it out. Once they find the dripping water and start poking it with their beaks, they can probably make the connection between poking the silvery nipple and getting water. Peas are more stubborn than stupid

 

[KsKingBee]

Clean water for our peas is a real concern mostly because of bacteria. I would love to use the nipple system just for the cleanliness, but if you observe the way peas drink you will notice that they will dip deeply into the water up past their nostrils. I think that this is important for them to clean out the nares. I like to use small deep bowls elevated to keep them from walking in the water and making it unsanitary. I also use the regular plastic gravity waterers, but will tip them so there is a deep water side for them to dip into.

I have had some bacteria issues in the past so I am trying to keep the water as sanitary as possible while keeping deep dishes available for them. And NO wading pools for me ever again!

 

[DylansMom]

I bought all the bits to make one a couple years ago, then stalled out when I figured out I would still have to run it from a bucket rather than hooking it up to a pressurized hose/fresh water supply line. I think my peas would have used it, because I saw them drinking water "drips" off the wire pen enclosure when I sprayed water on the plants next to the pen. They seemed to like collecting the little droplets dangling from the wire.

One thing I hadn't figured out though, was the height to use. I figured I was going to have to experiment to see what height they liked. Also, I understand that the pressure on the nozzle can affect how easily it dispenses water -- a big reason I was going to need to use a bucket rather than a pressurized line. (Yes, I do know there are pressure reducers, but the pressure on these nipple waterers, to be effective, is in the low range of 1 - 2 feet, which is a really big reduction from house pressure here.) I wanted to use the pressurized line so the water would stay clean and I didn't have to scrub buckets.

I also think it makes a difference (or it may make a difference) which nipple system you use -- the vertical nipples or the little bowl nipples. I seem to recall @DylansMom (do I have this right?) was using the little bowl ones, and the peas would never operate the little toggle to get the water into the bowl. I bought the vertical nipples because the dust and dirt problems in my area would have instantly filled the little bowls with mud or caked clay -- not an improvement over the constant mud caking in their regular waterers. (Then there's the whole other issue of keeping it from freezing here...)

I actually think if you used vertical nipples and somehow got them to drip (at least initially), and you took away the other water source for a day or so, they would work it out. Once they find the dripping water and start poking it with their beaks, they can probably make the connection between poking the silvery nipple and getting water. Peas are more stubborn than stupid

Excellent memory you have there, way better than mine! It was the little cup thing, and they loved it as long as I came down and pushed the toggle to fill it for them, they never would fill it themselves. I hate scrubbing buckets and I currently have 18 of them that I scrub twice a week.