I got tired of having to refill them all the time, so we made a pig waterer. It cost us $5, since all it took was a barrel and a nipple. We already had the barrel (it was our chicken cooling barrel when we raised meat chickens). It was simple to make, we just cut a hole in the barrel and used Q-Bond (a heavy duty super-glue like material) to glue the nipple in place. It has held up beautifully.
Then we set the waterer outside of the pig pen and put the nipple through the fence. We elevated it so the nipple is almost a foot off the ground.
It took them a while to use it, so I left the old water pans in there for a few weeks. They weren't figuring out how to use it, so when I was home all day one weekend I took their water pans out and used marshmallows to entice them to bite the nipple.
After about 20 minutes and 10 marshmallows (stuck on the end of the nipple), they finally figured it out. Actually, it was the littlest piglet who figured it out first. Once he got it, the others copied him. Now they always have fresh clean water, and I don't have to refill it multiple times a day!
I do still give them a mud hole though. You can't have pigs in these hot summers without giving them a wallow!
10 comments:
Something I learned from when I had my pigs is that if you take a soda bottle or milk jug and fill it with water and then freeze it you have a giant ice cube. You can either cut it or throw it in uncut and just keep refreezing it. They also love it if you throw the frozen block in with them when they are hot.
Great idea katie and I bet that means a lot less work for you!! I love Patrick's idea of the ice block! Hey Patrick! Love how little pig pig got it first!! Love you, Momma
What a great idea! Dealing with the humongous wallow at the feeding and watering area was my pet peeve when we had pigs. I am glad you give them a separate wallow, though. They sure do love their mud baths.
Brilliant idea! We had pig water problems all last year - this is a great solution. I hope you don't mind if we copy.
This is brilliant! Do you have a link to the nipple? The link above does not work. Much appreciated!!
Clint you can find the water nipples at tractor supply for pretty cheap. I'm sure amazon has them as well
This is SO COOL!!! My friends have a pet farm in East TN and they have 5 full grown pigs (2 of them I gave them as piglets. When I go visit I spoil them. Bannanas (peels incl), tater chips, peanuts, whatever! I use to always fill their pans in the hot summer, but they'd sometimes get their water dirty with their about and then flip the pans. And if they weren't thirsty or had their fill, they flip them anyway. Lol. So this is PERFECT for me. Any advice on keeping the water inside clean? Drop of bleach? Drainage hole at bottom? I saw one person posted a pick of a plastic barrel laying sideways but built up on a sturdy wooden frame about 4 feet off the ground. A hose or pvc pipe allows the water to run down and away from the side to a rail built next to the frame with nipples(?) Lined up along it! Dothe pigs fight over the one nipple design? Are there any germ issues in sharing or keeping the nipple clean etc. Doesn't irritate their mouth? Do they've entually ruin it? Replacement rate? Any addition tips would be great. Maintenance etc. Thanks. Great job!!!!
Katiegirl
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Thursday, June 21, 2012
$5 Pig Waterer
If you've ever had pigs, you know how hard it can be to keep their water trough clean. Heck, even if you've never had pigs I'm sure you know how much they love mud. Pigs + water = mud! I started out with a few shallow water pans for the pigs, and I'd have to fill them several times a day. As soon as I'd fill them, the pigs would flop over on them.
I got tired of having to refill them all the time, so we made a pig waterer. It cost us $5, since all it took was a barrel and a nipple. We already had the barrel (it was our chicken cooling barrel when we raised meat chickens). It was simple to make, we just cut a hole in the barrel and used Q-Bond (a heavy duty super-glue like material) to glue the nipple in place. It has held up beautifully.
Then we set the waterer outside of the pig pen and put the nipple through the fence. We elevated it so the nipple is almost a foot off the ground.
It took them a while to use it, so I left the old water pans in there for a few weeks. They weren't figuring out how to use it, so when I was home all day one weekend I took their water pans out and used marshmallows to entice them to bite the nipple.
Gerry ArtistFeb 5, 2020, 11:15:00 PM
This is SO COOL!!! My friends have a small pet farm in East TN and they have 5 full grown pigs (2 of them I gave them as piglets. When I go visit I spoil them. Bannanas (peels incl), tater chips, peanuts, whatever! I use to always fill their pans on the hot summer days, but they'd sometimes get their water dirty with their snouts and then flip the pans. And if they weren't thirsty or had their fill, they also flip them just for kicks. Lol. So this is PERFECT for me. Any advice on keeping the water inside clean? Drop of bleach inside? Drainage hole at bottom to change? How often? I saw one person posted a pick of a similar barrel waterer but they had it lying sideways and built up on a sturdy wooden frame about 4 feet off the ground. A hose or pvc pipe allows the water to run down by gravity and away from the tank along a railing attached to the frame with the nipples(?) Lined up along it! Questions: Do the pigs ever fight over the one nipple design? Are there any germ issues in sharing or keeping the nipple clean etc. Doesn't irritate their mouth? Do they've entually ruin it? Replacement rate? Any addition tips would be great. Maintenance etc. Thanks. Great job!!!!
Thanks again Katiegirl! Awesome idea!
Thanks again Katiegirl. My email is renaissanceprince@hotmail.com. I'd love to chat with you further about other pig related topics. Especially socializing them to each other. They are very Moody and temperamental at times. And the older ones seems to bully the two younger ones alot. Even biting behind ears on of the side of their necks etc. Even drawing blood! OMG! Love to chat with you about all that. Hit me up sometime. Thanks.
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