I
received 25 chicks on Tuesday. I had a water bottle hanging in
the
brooder for them. I let them settle for a while, then reached in
and
began to tap the Aqua Miser waterer. Several of the chicks
went to it
and tried. Most ignored it. I went outside to finish the
work I was
doing there. A hour or so later, I went back in and heard the
strangest sound coming from the brooder. I quietly crept over and
peeped in. The chicks were gathered in a circle around the
waterer and
taking turns pecking it to get water. It was almost like a machine gun
they were doing it so quickly. I have not had to worry about water.
I
used the waterer with one little lone chick before the others
arrived. It took it a couple of days to do for itself. I
trained it
by taking a Coke bottle top and using it to tap the waterer enough for
it to get a drink from the top. By the second day it still took one
drink, but without enthusiasm. The third day, it ignored the bottle top
completely. This thing really works!
I
have discovered a couple of things that you might want to post on
your web site.
- If you leave the water in the
container too long it
will get algae in it and that will stop up the waterer. Fresh water
needs to be added/changed often enough to keep that from
happening.
How often will depend on the weather, including humidity, and the
water. - I was wanting to use something
smaller than a 5-gallon
bucket, but larger than the one gallon plastic bottle I was
using. I
was in Lowes the other day, and as I was standing in line to check out,
I noticed the water cooler water bottles stacked in a rack by the front
door. I went over to look and discovered that there was a 3 1/2
gallon
bottle for $5-$6. I bought it, took it home and put two waterers
in
the bottom. I used a coat hanger to put through the holes I
drilled to
hang it by. A hint for this kind of bottle: The type of water
cooler
the bottle is designed for, has a small post in the center. The
paper
seal is peeled off the bottle top and when the bottle is turned over on
to the water cooler, the little post in the cooler punches the center
of the plastic cover back up into the bottle where it stays until it is
taken for a refill. The plug has an edge around it it keep it
from
coming out, however, I used a small pocket screwdriver and pried one
edge in enough to get hold of it with a pair of needle nose
pliers. I
was able to put the plug out. I now use it to cover the hole. The
lip
keeps it in place. The worst part of using this bottle is that a
funnel has to be used to replenish the water. To me, having a clear
plastic water bottle so I can see how much is in it and how it looks is
worth using the funnel.
Thought
you like to hear this.
Walt
(AKA Santa)
Troy,
TN
P.S.
I like them so much, I just ordered three more waterers.
