water/feeders

[Bawc]

Look for unpasteurized ACV which still contains the Mother culture. This is more related to chicken health and is not a requirement for water. You can read up on apple cider vinegar by doing a search.

 

[MoonShadows]

I think the most common brand that people use is Bragg. http://bragg.com/products/acvFAQ.html

You can find it in almost any health store or supermarket that has an organic/health section. Their site even has a store locator. http://bragg.com/reseller/retailerlist/locator_entrypage.html

You can also Google - make your own unpasteurized acv

 

[chickenforlife]

ok cool thank you guys. what else should i know about water and feed i mean other than they need it to live. and all the time .

 

[GuppyTJ]

Regarding ACV with the mother, you can get it at Walmart, even. Just make sure you pick up the one that says "with the mother" on the front label.

ChickensforLife, there is SO much info on feeders and waterers and so many different styles and ways of making them. All have pros and cons and at some point, it comes down to both your particular setup and preferences. For example, I *personally* don't like nipple waterers because IMHO, the chickens don't seem to drink as much using them as from a trough/bowl type waterer. BUT that's just me and my way of doing things. I also like hanging my feeder/waterer, that's important to me because it keeps things cleaner and lets me raise/lower the feeder/waterer to match the birds as they grow. But I have a coop that allows for hanging feeder/waterers, with strong steel beams in the roof to support this. Other people don't have the same setup or they don't care about this as much.

I also don't like my chickens getting on top of the waterer/feeder. So, I made a sort of pyramid/cone out of a recycled bin I cut using a circular saw. It's just the corner of a recycle bin with a hole cut through the corner. I ran the chain through the hole and then have a bent U shaped staple that holds it at the height I want. I made this idea up myself and it works. No chickens climbing up on my feeder/waterer so no poo gets in! This is an older picture of it from when my chicks were little. My waterer is different now, but you to get the idea of the recycled bin turned into a cone, which is the blue hanging thing over the feeder.

Good luck picking what works best for you! Many great ideas out there...
Guppy

 

[chickenforlife]

thank you so much for the information, i like your recycle bin idea not only is it reusing an old item (im big on that) im an eco friendly kind of person who actualy got rid of all gas powered things. but its really creative. and my run is where i keep the food and water right now because i want them to actualy leave the coop lol otherwise theyd spend all day being well lol chicken lol. not that they stay inside all day anyway i let them roam my yard witch is not a small 1/4th of an acre. and thats all pretty much open room with a bunch of shade from a 12 foot tall oak and a bunch of bushes. what is the best treat i could give them ?

 

[GuppyTJ]

Best treats... almost anything from your table scraps will work. Just in moderation. I give them a treat of table scraps every afternoon, using a blender to chop up the hard/big stuff. It's usually some combo of scraps of apple, celery, hard boiled egg, oats, tomato, potato (cooked) skins. Whatever we have left over, really. Here's a few links of what to give them and importantly, what not to give them. There are a few things you shouldn't feed them.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/chicken-treat-chart-the-best-treats-for-backyard-chickens

http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/08/chicken-treats-guide-dont-love-your.html

Guppy

 

[tx203grower]

This is what I rigged up for a waterer. Works well. Keeps water clean.

 

[MoonShadows]

Yup. If you can keep it up off the ground or contained, and they can't climb on top, the water will stay clean. Also, you won't have to worry about that chain breaking. Looks like it could hold up a bathtub full of water.

 

[tx203grower]

Haha, yea it's definitely a thick enough chain for the job. That's my next project, a type of installed feeder...possibly out of PVC piping.

 

[chickenforlife]

that sounds like a good idea the pvc. one thing im trying to teach my self is how to forge my own metal. just built a fordge. how would i make a feeder out of pvc ?