Winter is almost here!! Share your tips and tricks for coping the elements with your chickens!

[aart]

I use those waterers for my chicks! I like them.

Once you abandon fill and flip waterers....I don't care how good the locking mechanism is...... you'll never go back.
Just sayin'.

 

[wamtazlady]

Once you abandon fill and flip waterers....I don't care how good the locking mechanism is...... you'll never go back.
Just sayin'.

I have to agree with aart. Used to use those things. Tossed them a couple years ago. They were too heavy for me to lift. I couldn't turn them over without water pouring out. If they were not perfectly level the water either leaked out or refused to come out. Love my horizontal nipples.

 

[crealbilly]

Once you abandon fill and flip waterers....I don't care how good the locking mechanism is...... you'll never go back.
Just sayin'.  

Couldn't agree more... no more fill and flip for this guy. I have a vertical PVC pipe nipple waterer that im abandoning though in favor of 5 gallon double walled waterer.

I like the double walled waterers best. I like the ability to be able to move it where ever i need it, they are very easy to fill and super easy to clean.

I tried the horizontal nipples, after a few days i had to abondon them also because the chickens and turkeys could not catch on to them. The were very happy to get there double walled waterer back and so was I.

http://www.strombergschickens.com/product/Double-Wall-Fount-8-Gallon-Capacity/1-7-gallon-founts


I have this waterer - the plastic handle broke off after the second fill and it spills water all over the place when your flipping it and will leak water if not perfectly flat...

 

[aart]

I tried the horizontal nipples, after a few days i had to abondon them also because the chickens and turkeys could not catch on to them. The were very happy to get there double walled waterer back and so was I.

Takes more than a few days to train to nipples from open waterers.
Best done during mild weather(not too hot, not too cold) to lessen chance of serious dehydration.
Can be arduous and frustrating, there's some tips and tricks, but well worth the effort in the long run.

 

[wamtazlady]

I have had 2 batches of birds that got changed over to nipples from open water. The first group was using the nipples within a couple hours. The other group I put in my coop at night. When I peeked in on them at 7 am they were already using the nipples.

I have no idea why some people seem to have trouble getting their birds to use the nipples. I have always assumed that the birds would use the nipples, and they have never let me down. Last fall I changed from vertical nipples to horizontal nipples without any problems. Chickens are curious. They will peck at something new. They also peck at red. One of them pecks at the new nipples to see what they are, gets water. They all see that and all start to use the nipples.

 

[aart]

I have had 2 batches of birds that got changed over to nipples from open water. The first group was using the nipples within a couple hours. The other group I put in my coop at night. When I peeked in on them at 7 am they were already using the nipples.

I have no idea why some people seem to have trouble getting their birds to use the nipples. I have always assumed that the birds would use the nipples, and they have never let me down. Last fall I changed from vertical nipples to horizontal nipples without any problems. Chickens are curious. They will peck at something new. They also peck at red. One of them pecks at the new nipples to see what they are, gets water. They all see that and all start to use the nipples.

I've had some pick it up without a hitch...and others just don't seem to get it for a week or more.

 

[wamtazlady]

I've had some pick it up without a hitch...and others just don't seem to get it for a week or more.

The neighbors on both sides of me had chickens so all the birds would be hanging around my field during the day. Even the neighbors' chickens would go into my run to use the nipples rather than go home to get a drink. I have no idea how they learned to use them.

 

[aart]

Quote: You didn't have to prompt them at all...by triggering the pin?
Maybe that was my mistake, to trigger the pin, then they wouldn't try to drink unless *I* triggered it.

 

[wamtazlady]

You didn't have to prompt them at all...by triggering the pin?
Maybe that was my mistake, to trigger the pin, then they wouldn't try to drink unless *I* triggered it.

Nope. Never jiggled the pin. Just put the nipple waterer in the run or coop and took the other waterer out. They learned. I don't know how. Even I was surprised the last pullets I got learned to use those nipples so fast. Certainly wasn't expecting them to be using the nipples first thing in the morning after drinking from a dog dish all their lives.

 

[CuzChickens]

Even when chickens have been drinking from the typical waterers their whole life, they still figure out how to use the nipples?