glass water bottles

[Zinnia]

Anyone here use glass water bottles? Do you like them? Where do you get them?

Any suggestions on good water bottles (or watering methods) would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Zinnia

 

[Sagebrush]

I have found some at pet stores like Petsmart and Petco. I am going to have to get a few for 3 of my buns. One just wants to chew anything I put in his cage and the other two does chew small holes through the wire on the very edge of the bottom of the bottle.

 

[akane]

I get glass lixits from a petstore. You can get glass kaytee or livingworld bottles at petco and petsmart but they have a high chance of leaking compared to lixits. A more local, high quality petstore or the internet would be the best places to look for good glass bottles. We only use them for chinchillas. Our rabbits never chew the bottles so long as the bottles don't run empty too long. I've even used them with 2x2" bar spacing or in a hanging sleeve inside cages with mostly solid sides. Never had one chewed by a rabbit. We use critter canteens and top fill plastic lixits for everything besides the chinchillas.

 

[Zass]

My only concern with glass bottles would be freezing in winter, if they happen to be outside somewhere that it freezes. I've never tested a glass bottle in winter. The plastic bottles seem to handle the expansion and contraction pretty well if they aren't fill all the way. I bring them in frozen and toss them right into a bucket of hot water to thaw.

 

[Sagebrush]

My three that I want to switch chew the bottles as soon as I refill them, once they are empty they leave them alone. :eyeroll:

 

[Zinnia]

My only concern with glass bottles would be freezing in winter, if they happen to be outside somewhere that it freezes. I've never tested a glass bottle in winter. The plastic bottles seem to handle the expansion and contraction pretty well if they aren't fill all the way. I bring them in frozen and toss them right into a bucket of hot water to thaw.

I guess this would be my biggest concern, too. Where we live, the rabbit's waters freeze a good 1/3 of the year. We thaw them in our spring creek. I wonder if they would be too apt to break in our situation.

I might get one to try.

We end up giving a bowl of snow during the very cold weather, in addition to water bottles given (and taken back right away, or they'll freeze) a few times a day... Just trying to figure out a better watering plan....

 

[akane]

The critter canteen bottoms will bulge out and then return to proper shape when frozen and thawed. Sometimes after being frozen many times the bottom doesn't quite go flat but aside from a little increased difficulty filling it's no big deal. I've never used glass bottles outside. Since the tubes freeze so fast if I didn't have heated lixits I'd probably just give in and add some crocks. They are cheaper and far more durable. I don't know how many I've dropped on the wood floor and freezing doesn't harm them. A lot of people use a dish that is more flexible so they can pop out the ice and refill without having to thaw them. Colonies are great in the winter. The rabbits stay warmer digging themselves in to shavings and straw and it just takes 1 chicken waterer on a heater base to cover dozens of rabbits.

 

[Marinea]

The freezing issue is one of the reasons I switched to water crocks. I just bought two sets, and during the winter, I just swap them out, thaw out the frozen ones, and repeat as needed, which is usually two to three times a day when it's the coldest.

Now that the summer heat is upon us, I am adding the water bottles back, but keeping the crocks out as well.

 

[Wheels]

I don't live where it freezes much - I have found that most screw top fifth (750 mL) liquor bottles fit most of your standard sipper tops for water bottles. I like them because I have more of a problem with plastic bottles becoming brittle and cracking. The long necks can make positioning them on cages a little tricky but it's a minor issue.

 

[Sagebrush]

I might try that Wheels, at least see how it works with my three. I have tons of sipper tops.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

Any suggestions on good water bottles (or watering methods) would be appreciated.

The all time easiest is an automated system like I have in my main barn. However, I have come up with a couple of different methods for my growout pens...

I have found that most screw top fifth (750 mL) liquor bottles

And yet another way to use liquor bottles in a gravity fed system with a crock:



Tutorial is here:

gravity-fed-crocks-now-available-in-designer-colors-t6638.html

I have also installed the valve type nipples on large food grade buckets:



Tutorial here:

homemade-bucket-waterers-an-burlap-tarps-t9040.html

 

[acrehillfarm]

As far as ease of use, our automatic watering system with nipples on the cages and a 5-gallon bucket is my favorite. We plan on switching to almost all automatic watering system for the warm months.

Having said that, when we bought cages and supplies (and rabbits) from a rabbitry that was closing, they came with the Lixit glass bottles and the mounting brackets for the cages. By far, they are my favorite of any other water bottle we have used. We didn't have them through all of winter, but through some colder 20-30 degree days. Granted, where they were didn't seem to get as cold as the outside temperature (garage shelter, no heat) but nothing froze.

The only reason why I like the automatic watering system better is that the water lasts longer. Otherwise, I highly recommend the glass, and eventually we want to switch all of our cages to the glass bottles for at least parts of the year.

Forgot to add that Klubertanz sells the Lixit bottles with the mounting brackets. They aren't cheap, but they sure are durable. The glass is THICK too.