I've got this odd problem. I took the chicks off of newspaper and put them on pine shavings. They are kicking the shavings into the water feeder and in turn, the shavings in the water are touching the shavings on the ground and they've completely drained my waterer twice! I ended up putting the waterers on plates so they wouldn't be actually in the chips, but at the feed store, they've got the water right in the chips, so I can't figure out why this is happening. It's not a leaking waterer - both of them in two separate brooders have done the same thing. Ideas?
Bedding Sucking Up the Water
I do the same thing...up on plates until they are old enough to not drown in a heavy bowl they can't tip over.
In our feed store the chicks are in a water trough with a wire cover. They hang the waterer from the wire so it is just high enough not to fill with shavings. I also think they do not use a very thick layer of shavings and the chicks can spread out more. I always put the waterer on the far side of the brooder, so they go to it just for water.
Also, the first week or so I cover the shavings with paper towels--they can find food better and less shavings are kicked in the water. Sometimes I keep the waterer on paper towels for a couple weeks--with a waterer on a plate. Otherwise the shavings are always getting wet--which you really don't want.
I set the waterer on a 2x6 board to raise it up out of the shavings, and then onto bricks as the chicks get bigger.
I use a cardboard box about a foot wide and eight inches deep. I cut out the front onlyso the sides protect the water from shavings, and I sprinkle the bottom of the box heavily with powdered food so about ten babies can feed while others are frenquenting the waterer. That really takes care of the shavings for me. Haystack. If you'd like a pic of what it looks like let me know...
I took some small mesh rabit wire and moulded it over the top of a pie plate, then set the waterer on top in the brooder. It raises it up so they don't kick shavings in it and the water that does come out goes in the pie plate
oo i like both of those ideas. I usually sit mine on a brick but the babies seem to get shavings into it anyways.