Using Pond for Watering

[Empera]

Probably 100 gallons we put into the empty pond. We put it in the ground outside for the chickens, and it has nothing besides water in it. (No fish, rocks, etc)

Recently I've noticed a lot of my chickens having diarrhea, and I'm wondering if the fact that we haven't cleaned the pond could be the reason.

I'm feeding them layer pellets and none of the chickens seem to be having any other signs of illness.

We put the pond in around the beginning of December.

I'm going to clean the pond out later today anyways, but i'm still very worried.

 

[rdranch]

Do you have a pump and filter in the pond? If there is nothing to circulate, aerate and fliter the water it could become stagnant and bad for them drink.

 

[patandchickens]

Yeah, there are any number of things that can proliferate in stagnant water that are not good for animals to be drinking. Bluegreen algae would actually be at the top of my list, but there's others. Also the chemical water quality can become not good for drinking.

Really it is not a good idea to have livestock drinking out of nonrunning water unless it is cleaned/refilled frequently (e.g. a typical chicken waterer or horse tub) or is BIIIIIIIIG e.g. a lake-sized pond. Mind you can often get away with it anyhow, but then again, sometimes you can't and you're kicking yourself for it afterwards. IMO it is really best not to do.

Aerating the pond with a continually recirculating pump, and scrubbing it and replacing the water periodically, would be a step in the right direction. Honestly though just not using it as a chicken waterer would probably be the best idea of all.

Good luck,

Pat