Whiskybear
Songster
- Jan 4, 2022
- 232
- 385
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I’m a year into this with quail now. I’m starting to get the processes refined. Teaching them to drink a few different ways at stages of their growth is in the playbook. They start with a gravity trough under a mason jar; pebbles for the first day or two, then without. Around day 4 or 5 I introduce this tiny ball nipple drinker like a rabbit bottle but for runty mice. I snag a few and stuff their beaks into the end so they get water, then set them and it down next to each other. They usually figure this out in a matter of minutes and teach the others. They get the trough back at night until the stupid ones have caught on ( a couple days).
By day 8 or so, I introduce a full size rabbit bottle the same way. Same mechanism, just bigger… same couple days learning curve. Around 13 days I start with the horizontal drinking nipples on a small bucket. Ya get the idea. They’re ready for the red horizontal nipple by the time they go outside at 14-17 days.
Where I could use help (that’s expansive, but I mean just on this issue
) is finding some bigger reservoirs using that tiny runty mouse sized ball nipple. That thing holds <4oz and will be depleted by 10 chicks in a couple hours. Using six for a large hatch is not even really feasible, not to mention a pain in …
I can’t find anything bigger using that size ball nipple. Can you?
By day 8 or so, I introduce a full size rabbit bottle the same way. Same mechanism, just bigger… same couple days learning curve. Around 13 days I start with the horizontal drinking nipples on a small bucket. Ya get the idea. They’re ready for the red horizontal nipple by the time they go outside at 14-17 days.
Where I could use help (that’s expansive, but I mean just on this issue

I can’t find anything bigger using that size ball nipple. Can you?