sun_city_girl
Warren Veteran
This may be a bizarre thought but I always give Bun water in his bowl from the tap, I suddenly thought yesterday would rain water from the water butt be better??
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Water.
- Thread starter sun_city_girl
- Start date
Santa
Wise Old Thumper
I had a similar thought a few years ago and concluded that no it wouldn't. It would be more 'pure' in one sense and without fluorine etc, but it would be full of bacteria especially at this time of year when a water butt will get fairly warm and would be a fairly gloopy microbe soup. It's not just going to have rainwater in it, it's also going to have pigeon poo, bits that slough off the roof, dead insects, etc etc all of which will get into the butt and fester over time before the water is used.
William
Wise Old Thumper
If it were boiled first I suppose it would be ok? But otherwise I also thought that bacteria would be growing in the water butt.. I think there's some conflict on whether rainwater is very clean in the first place too. Me and my dad were just talking about that a couple days ago.
MightyMax
Banned
I considered this years ago, and decided with the amount of filtering, evaporation, atmospheric pollution, that it wasn't worth the risk. Even clouds contain Pseudomonas
My rabbits get filtered water anyway, but there again, wild rabbits drink rainwater
My buns have always had tap water, but they always prefer the water that is out in the run and which usually has had a little of the algae off the wooden roof bars washed into it by the rain, for some weird reason. I've even seen the, come out of the shed where there is a second water bowl, in the rain to drink outside.
Our chickens will always drink a lot from any rainwater they find in the garden, in puddles, pots or pond for instance. I've often wondered if they actually prefer the taste or whether it's just the thrill of coming across some secret treaure that maybe they shouldn't have :lol:
Santa
Wise Old Thumper
I think they probably do prefer natural rainwater, it won't taste as chemically. And probably the thrill of thinking that they shouldn't, too :lol: Rainwater in a puddle or pot is likely to be fresher than from a water butt though, as it is a smaller amount so will turnover to fresh water pretty much every time it rains, whereas a water butt could contain water that has festered with micro-organisms for weeks/months.
keletkezes
Wise Old Thumper
Water butts get hot, so it'll be like giving them water from a bottle that's been in there for however-long it's been in there, kinda brackish and weird. Ours do prefer to drink from their filthy outside bowl, especially if it's just rained, although the rain goes in off of the brick above it (holding the run down) which is covered in moss.
NB I do clean the outside one but there's only so much a sponge will do! :lol:
NB I do clean the outside one but there's only so much a sponge will do! :lol:
daphnephoebe
Wise Old Thumper
I'd stick to tap water. But as a treat you can always collect a bowl of fresh rain water for them and bring that inside?
The water butt will be filled with bacteria etc.
Sent from my SM-G903F using Tapatalk
The water butt will be filled with bacteria etc.
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sun_city_girl
Warren Veteran
I'm surprised people have such yucky water butt water, I mean not that I take the lid of a lot but we use the water butt water a lot and it always looks just like the water from the tap lol
I'm glad other people have thought about it too though!
So far he has obv drank tap water no issues for the last 6.5 years, no plans to change it then!!
I'm glad other people have thought about it too though!
So far he has obv drank tap water no issues for the last 6.5 years, no plans to change it then!!
Rainwater sounds lovely, fresh and natural - but I live only a few miles from the the M25, I hate to think what's in the rain that falls around here - certainly it's not uncommon for me to have to wash the car after it's rained because the car gets covered in a nasty film of grime, dirt and chemicals
So no rainwater for my buns, I provide them with tap water that's been filtered. Bob will drink out of anything, Kizzy will only drink out of a white china bowl - she doesn't like black or patterned china. She will often thump loudly and glare at me if the water bowl gets a stray hair in it but doesn't seem in the slightest bit bothered if she manages to kick a stray poo in it. :roll:
So no rainwater for my buns, I provide them with tap water that's been filtered. Bob will drink out of anything, Kizzy will only drink out of a white china bowl - she doesn't like black or patterned china. She will often thump loudly and glare at me if the water bowl gets a stray hair in it but doesn't seem in the slightest bit bothered if she manages to kick a stray poo in it. :roll:
