Top 10 | The Best Drinkers for Pet Birds

Translated by Nick R

Bird accessories are fundamental for their overall well-being, including drinkers, which help keep your bird hydrated. Here I show you the best drinkers for your friend.

Why are bird drinkers important? 

Drinkers perform the vital function of keeping your bird hydrated. It is essential to guarantee hydration every day and in good quantities. Birds require this resource frequently because their metabolism is very fast and they are very active.

Water is involved in the bird’s vital functions, including 3 very important ones:

  • Digestion and utilization of nutrients.
  • Expulsion of metabolic waste through feces.
  • Distribution of oxygen and nutrients to cells throughout the body.

5 Factors affecting the quality of water in drinking troughs 

The water in drinking fountains is exposed to several factors that you must take into account in order to offer the best quality water to your winged friend, pay close attention to the following:

Exposure 

The quality of the water in the drinker will be determined by exposure to the sun, which will change the temperature, affecting the quality of the water and the container if it is not sun resistant. On the other hand, exposure to UV rays can be beneficial, as they kill or inactivate bacteria and other microorganisms.

Material 

The material of the drinker because if the material is made of toxic or non-durable materials, it will affect the quality of the water.

Temperature 

The temperature is fundamental for the quality of the water in the drinker, the water will be fresher and of better quality, as it maintains a balanced temperature at room temperature.

Time 

The storage time of the water in the drinker is fundamental, mainly because the longer the water remains in the drinker, its quality will tend to decrease, especially if there is no good hygiene, becoming a breeding ground for diseases.

Cleaning 

The hygiene and maintenance of the drinker, the cage, and the environment in general, will determine to a great extent the quality of the water. The less cleanliness and maintenance you do to the environment, particularly the drinker, the poorer the water quality can be, and the dirtier and more contaminated the water becomes.

Types of bird drinkers 

In the poultry accessories market, there are two types of drinkers in general, which in turn have other subtypes:

Drinkers for domestic birds 

There are individual drinkers not designed for the communal hydration of several birds at the same time, but as an accessory with the capacity to hydrate one bird at a time and with the purpose of quenching the thirst of domestic birds, such as canaries, cockatiels, parakeets, lovebirds, parakeets, lovebirds, goldfinches, parrots, parakeets, zebra finches, among others.

These are the most common drinking troughs for domestic birds:

  • Siphon drinker.
  • Drinker with a ball.
  • Drinker with dispenser.
  • Bottle-type drinker.
  • Automatic drinkers.
  • Bottle drinker or Acuabird with collar.
  • Mini” bird drinker.
  • Mixed drinker glass bottle (also serves as a feeder).
  • Tilting drinking fountain.
  • Tilting bird drinker with a tank.
  • Tube-type drinking trough.
  • Cup-type drinking trough.
  • Fountain-type drinking trough.

Drinkers for poultry 

Other drinkers are designed to hydrate several birds at the same time and most of them are larger, with larger capacity and useful for poultry such as chickens, ducks and geese.  Here are some of the most common poultry drinkers:

  • Bucket drinkers.
  • Self-contained water dispensers.
  • Bell drinkers.
  • Automatic waterers for chickens.
  • Cup or nipple drinkers.
  • Hoppers with or without legs.
  • Trough type drinkers.
  • Bowl drinkers for hens.

What should I consider when choosing the best drinker? 

As you can see, there are several types of drinkers with different designs and functions. However, not all drinkers are ideal for your bird. Here I’ll show you what are the necessary characteristics to choose the best one for your friend.

Drinker capacity 

When choosing a waterer for your bird it’s essential to choose one that has enough milliliters to satiate the thirst of your birds (depending on the species). Of course, you can distribute the water in several drinkers of smaller capacity, depending on the space, the species, and their behaviors.

Drinker design 

The design of the drinker is important because it determines the comfort and guarantees the water supply. So, it must guarantee five things:

  • Supplying water easily and within reach of all birds.
  • Use of the water resource with minimum loss.
  • Efficiency in the water supply every day and at every moment.
  • Ease of cleaning the drinker, so that cleaning the container doesn’t turn into an impossible mission.
  • Stability of the container so the water is not easily knocked over.

10 Best drinkers for pet birds 

Considering the ideal features to choose a drinker, here are the best drinkers for pet birds, specifically for domestic birds and poultry.

Siphon drinkers 

This is undoubtedly the most used and sold drinker for small birds. This type of drinker is characterized by having a transparent tube almost always called “duck bill tube” and a base with a rounded siphon nozzle, which doesn’t mistreat the bird’s beak.

Advantages 

  • Safe for small birds.
  • Guarantees water supply.
  • Stable and can be placed anywhere in the cage.
  • It is accessible and facilitates water consumption by the bird.
  • Economical.

Disadvantages 

  • Greater exposure to clean water to the environment.
  • Higher water loss.

Ball or drip drinkers 

This drinker has the same structure as the siphon drinker but with an additional difference in its termination with a double steel ball system.

Advantages 

  • Safe for the birds.
  • Guarantees water supply.
  • Stable drinker, adaptable to any part of the cage.
  • Less water loss.
  • More hermetic, less water contact with the environment.
  • Semi-automatic.

Disadvantages 

  • Exclusive for cages.
  • Its airtightness can be a disadvantage since water that remains stored for a long time can promote the proliferation of microorganisms that are harmful to health and the deoxygenation of the water.

Drinkers with dispenser 

A type of drinker very similar to the ball drinker, ideal for small and medium-sized birds (capacity from 200 cc to 1000 cc). The main difference with the ball drinkers is that it has a spring and rubber system, instead of a ball system.

Advantages 

  • Greater storage capacity.
  • Good water supply.
  • Decreases water loss.
  • Easy to use by the bird.
  • Less contact of clean water with the environment.
  • Good stability.
  • Semi-automatic.

Disadvantages 

Very airtight. Frequent cleaning of the drinker and changing of water is essential to avoid diseases.

Fountain drinkers 

This type of drinker is characterized by their resemblance to fountains. They have a tray where the water is deposited, which is supported on a pillar of a certain height.

Advantages 

  • The bird will have a water source outside the cage. Guarantees the bird’s hydration during its recreation time.
  • Useful for country aviaries.
  • Easy to clean
  • It has different sizes.
  • Works as a drinking and bathing trough.

Disadvantages 

  • Not very airtight and very exposed to the environment.
  • Greater waste of water.

Bell-like drinkers 

These are bell-shaped drinkers used for poultry and backyard birds, with an automatic water supply system directly to a tap or faucet.

Advantages 

  • Good capacity.
  • Automatic supply.
  • Useful for hydrating several birds at the same time in small flocks.
  • Easy to clean.
  • Easy consumption for birds and their chicks.
  • Easy to install.

Disadvantages 

  • Not very airtight.

Dispenser drinkers of self-contained water 

It’s a drinker that is manually filled and very similar to the bell drinker, but with a larger capacity. This container is one of the most used by poultry breeders, with a capacity from 500ml to approximately 10 liters.

Advantages 

  • Very high capacity.
  • Useful for hydration of several birds at the same time in large flocks.
  • Easy to clean drinker.
  • Easy adaptation.
  • Possibility of hanging it.

Disadvantages 

  • It’s a manual drinker, it depends on the keeper to fill the container.

Teat or nipple-type drinkers

It consists of a nipple that releases water in drops as the bird drinks, connected to a tray at the bottom where the water is deposited.

Nipple drinker 

Advantages 

  • Easy to install.
  • Long useful life.
  • Guarantees a constant supply of water.
  • Can be used as a complement to automatic drinkers.
  • Little water waste.
  • Very safe for chicks.

Disadvantages 

  • Easily gets dirty.

Bottle drinkers 

Very similar to the siphon drinker, but combines the siphon and ball system. The container is shaped like a bottle, hence the name. It is normally used for small birds and their transport.

Advantages 

  • Guarantees water supply.
  • Adaptable to any part of the cage.
  • Less water loss, thanks to its drip system.
  • Hermetic.
  • Semi-automatic.

Disadvantages 

  • Exclusive for cages.
  • The ball of the mechanism tends to clog. For this reason, the cage must be checked daily.

Automatic drinkers 

This is one of the best drinking troughs, in my opinion, meeting the basic requirements of a quality drinker. Unlike the rest, it has an automatic water supply system by means of a direct source to a faucet or tap and allows the bird to “pour the water itself” by means of different mechanisms such as plungers in different designs.

Advantages 

  • Guarantees constant water supply to the birds, thanks to its automated system.
  • Promotes the animal’s independence.
  • It has different designs for both poultry and domestic birds.
  • More efficient and with less water waste.
  • Different presentations with different capacities.

Disadvantages 

  • Their main disadvantage is that they are more difficult to install and adapt.

Composed drinkers 

A type of dismountable drinker made of plastic and with a cup made of stainless steel in some cases. When we say that it is mixed, we mean that it serves any species of pet birds, whether poultry or domestic, and other animals such as rabbits. It works with a gravity water supply system (waterfalls).

Advantages 

  • Easy to clean, thanks it can be disassembled.
  • Useful for small and medium-sized birds.
  • Guarantees constant water supply.
  • Versatile, adaptable to other accessories such as plastic tanks or bottles and any cage.
  • Has a stopper to empty stagnant water.

Disadvantages 

  • Limited capacity.

Now that you know which are the best waterers for your bird, go and get one!

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