Drinking troughs and fountains

84. The hen drinks a great deal.

A hen can drink more than a quarter of a litre of water a day.

Drinking troughs must:

· be big enough and in sufficient numbers to hold plenty of water;
· be big enough for a number of birds to drink without getting in each other's way;
· keep the water clean;
· not let the chicks fall into the water.

You can use:

Bowls or buckets put on a stand or let into the ground and partly covered by netting.

Home- made drinking troughs and fountains with founts

For chicks: put the water in a shallow bowl or can at which the chick can drink easily; take a bottle and fill it with water; turn the bottle upside down and put the neck in the bowl; lean the bottle against a wall or make a support as shown on page 43.

As the chick drinks, the water in the bottle flows into the bowl.

An ordinary 10- or 15- litre bucket serves very well too. Sink it in the ground so that only about 10 centimetres are out. Be sure to change the water frequently.

You can make a very good drinking trough from an old kerosene can, as shown on the facing page.

Bought drinking troughs with founts.

If you have a lot of poultry, and you take very good care of them, and if you can sell them easily, it is better to buy drinking troughs with founts.

Poultry