Wondering how to keep your livestock water supplies from freezing? Each livestock watering situation is unique and preventing your livestock’s water from freezing can be difficult, time-consuming and cold. Here are some tips we implement on our farms that you can use, too!
Chickens
Chickens need water all throughout the day to digest their food as it softens the dry pellets or crumbles and seeds they eat. Water also keeps a hen's body system working as it should. It's essential for egg-laying as well as for waste elimination, and it helps regulate her body temperature.
If your coop has access to electricity, you could purchase a heated bowl or heated poultry waterer that will warm the water enough to keep it from freezing. If your coop does not have access to electricity, you could try filling a water bottle with warm salt water and put it inside the poultry waterer. If you do this, just be sure to check the water multiple times a day. Also, make sure the salt water doesn’t leak into the fresh water as no one, not even chickens, likes salty water!
Ducks
Ducks love water and need to be able to put their beaks in water so they can clean their nostrils. The salt water bottles that you used for the chickens will work for the ducks as well. Since ducks dunk their heads and clean their feathers you should get a feed pan, preferably rubber, and fill that with water morning and night. Keep it in the warm sun and be sure the pan is small enough so they can’t swim.
Livestock (goats, sheep, horses, cattle…)
No matter the type of livestock you have, these tips will work! For those large livestock troughs, you can find ones that are made out of black rubber that when put in the sun, are slower to freeze. If your trough is not black rubber, painting the tank black could also allow the heat from the sun to be absorbed.
A handy tool that we suggest for these are tank de-icers also known as a tank heater. This will save you having to chop ice with an ax or a sledge hammer, trust us! There are several types of tank de-icers, so be sure to get the one that's right for your trough. Don’t forget if you use rubber troughs to keep the heating element away from the trough's plastic sides!
If your water trough is too far from an electrical outlet for a tank heater, try these ideas to keep your animals' water as warm as possible:
- - Move your water trough to a sunny location
- - Add several tightly-closed two-liter bottles of salt water to the water trough (the same principle as the salt-water bottle in the chickens' waterer)
- - Insulate the outside of the trough. Place the water tub inside a larger tub and fill the empty space in between with straw to insulate it
- - Cover half of the trough with a strong piece of plexiglass. This works like a greenhouse while allowing the livestock to drink out of the uncovered half. A smaller opening keeps exposure to cold air at a minimum.
Also keep in mind, winter is a great time to supply a salt block for your horses so they will drink as much water as they should. This month, Martin’s Feed Mill is having a New Year special:
Buy 5 bags of Martin’s horse feed - Get 1 FREE Salt Brick!
OR
3 FREE Salt Bricks with 10 bags!
Valid January 17-22nd, 2022 Only at Martin's Feed Mill. Stop by today or call us to place your order. 814-349-8787
With these tips, you can keep your animals' water from freezing and keep them well-hydrated and healthy this winter. Needing supplies? We carry stock tank de-icers, heated rabbit water bottles, heated pet bowls, poultry water heaters, and more. Stop by Martin's Feed Mill today!