lystn

As soon as the temps start to dip, the most common question I am asked is this: Amy, how do you keep chickens water from freezing in the winter? How do you keep their water open so they can drink it when the daytime high is below zero? I can tell you the one way I’ve found to keep chickens water from freezing in the winter. Here's me being real with you. Ready? The one way to for sure keep chickens water from freezing is for you to walk your lil' self out to your chickens two or three times a day and change the water . For. Real. (Don't want to read all the words? This blog post is also a podcast—just press the triangle play button on the little black bar at the top of this post!) Now, that's probably not the answer you were looking for. You're looking for a trick to actually keep chickens water from freezing. A tip. A way you can leave them unattended all day and they'll have a fountain of awesome to drink from when it's -50. Let's talk about this, okay? I'm going to share with you some realities about water intake, some safety and cost issues with heated waterers, how I feel about the many non-electric tips floating around social media, and what exactly I do as far as water for my chickens in the winter. Amy, listen. I need to keep my chickens water from freezing. My chickens will die of thirst if their winter water isn’t open 24-7. Let's state this for the record, because I know I'll get emails from people saying I'm mean. I absolutely believe that it’s important that chickens have water. People who leave their chickens without water until they are dying of thirst are jerks and should have their chickens confiscated. But let’s think about this, okay? Here are a few things to keep in mind. Let's look at you and your winter water intake Yes, we should all have water available—but that doesn't mean we are always thirsty or even paying attention to the need. Do you walk around with a glass of water in your hand all day? Think about it. Do you drink as much water as you're supposed to, especially in the winter? Are you thirsty when it's -20? I'm not asking if you should drink water when it's -20, I'm asking if you do drink (as much water as you should) when it's -20. I'm trying to make a point here.You are worried about how to keep chickens water from freezing, but your chickens aren't necessarily thirsty or even thinking about water when it's -20. Stop to consider this: let's say you go out to the barn and the chickens water has frozen. The fact that there was frozen water in the bowl means your chickens didn't want it all. I mean, honestly—the chickens were not perched there trying to gulp with their little chicken beaks as a lightning fast layer of ice blasted across the surface of their water, pushing their faces out of the bowl. Your chickens drank some and then they went off to do wintery chicken things. They came back and the water was frozen. They went off and did wintery chicken things. They are not dying of thirst because when you go back out to the barn, you're going to give them more water. Kind of like when you're busy because you're stuck in traffic and out of coffee. You're going to be okay. Promise. Let's look at nature While we worry about how to keep chickens water from freezing, let's remember that birds in the wild do not always have water available. This I have to make sure my chickens have access to fresh, unfrozen water 24-7 is. Not. Mirrored. In. Nature. There are many folks who have said well sure Amy, you can change their water 2-3 times a day because you’re home. a) Actually, I’m not always home and b) your chickens getting water in the morning before you leave for work and then again when you get home is seriously fine. Because here’s the other thing. If you do have a waterer that’s heated and they are so thirsty that they drain it while you’re at work...it’s not going to get filled until you get home anyway, right? Let's look into the past