WARNING: the importance of water being available AT ALL TIMES

[SquamishSerpents]

so last night before we went to bed, i went to oil the ASF wheels cause they were squeaking pretty badly. and to my dismay, there was a dead rat, that had been completely turned inside out and eaten. even MORE to my dismay, it was the male in my 3 month old 1.4 breeding colony. they should have been breeding in about another month, maybe a little more. so needless to say, i was pretty disappointed. i couldn't figure out why they would cannibalize him, they had lots of food, and a full water bottle. so we went to bed.

this morning, i look in, and see ANOTHER dead rat, again turned inside out and eaten. i checked on the others, and they felt a little weird, their fur looked a bit off, and it was as if they were a little stiffer than usual. so i thought, great, they're all gonna die and i have NO idea why! then i decided to check their water bottle. lo and behold, it WASN'T WORKING! no water whatsoever was coming out. i guess there was a little piece of sawdust or something jammed up inside.

and now, i feel HORRIBLE!!!!!!!!! it's all MY FAULT that these poor little ratty's went without water. in a colony of 5 rats, the water usually lasts 2-3 days. yesterday i looked in, saw that the duckie was still at the top, indicating that their water was full. i just assumed dave had filled them up yesterday while i was at work. but nope, it was full because it was jammed, and the poor little rattys died of dehydration.

on the bright side, i still have a male and female who are very established breeders, and another colony of 1.4 in another tub. in fact, the established male and female just gave birth (literally started minutes ago, is probably still poppin' them out) and it was only 30 days ago she had another litter. so at least she's reliable.

so let this be a warning to you all, i would have for it to happen to anyone else's colony in the future, CHECK THE WATER SUPPLY EVERYDAY! not just visually to make sure that the bottles are full, but make sure they are actually dispensing water!

[Danounet]

I was just wondering about this. I walked by one of the ASF's weaned tubs and heard fighting noises so I took a look inside. They seem to be fighting over the water bottle...

Is this normal? I guess adding a 2nd water bottle will help. I took a small deli cup with water and put it in there, almost within a few seconds 5-6 of them were drinking out of the cup...

[Darkice]

A couple weeks ago mine ran out of water and slaughtered all their babies. I use the giant bottles for rabbits now and never let them get below half.

[Mike Cavanaugh]

Any time they are fighting over the water bottle something is wrong. usually it is clogged or something, and they are fighting over a single drop of water that may have come out.

I fill all of my water bottles at the same time. This way I notice when one of the bottles is still full after a day. Then I have time to fix the problem before anything dies.

[SquamishSerpents]

A couple weeks ago mine ran out of water and slaughtered all their babies. I use the giant bottles for rabbits now and never let them get below half.

which bottles do you use? i use the all-glass, metal spout superpet bottles, and they're only 6oz. all the rabbit bottles i have come across are made of plastic, and with my ASF's that just won't do! within the first week of having them they had chewed giant holes in 2 bottles.

i set an alarm on my phone for everyday, about 1/2 after work to check on all the bottles and make sure they have adequate water/are dispensing water properly to make sure this never happens again.

[Darkice]

which bottles do you use? i use the all-glass, metal spout superpet bottles, and they're only 6oz. all the rabbit bottles i have come across are made of plastic, and with my ASF's that just won't do! within the first week of having them they had chewed giant holes in 2 bottles.

i set an alarm on my phone for everyday, about 1/2 after work to check on all the bottles and make sure they have adequate water/are dispensing water properly to make sure this never happens again.

I just use the cheap 32oz plastic ones from tractor supply. My rats have never chewed them up.

[SquamishSerpents]

haha, lucky!

[pavlovk1025]

I use three different types of bottles. Here they are:

This thing, but you have to use it with a chew guard
http://www.petco.com/product/105615/...eedersWaterers

This thing, but it needs to be refilled constantly
http://www.petco.com/product/102311/...eedersWaterers

And this one. I find its rounded design doesnt allow the ASFs to chew thru it
http://www.petco.com/product/14943/S...eedersWaterers

[SquamishSerpents]

yes, pavlovk1025, these are what i used too, but it was one of those that jammed and quit working. i don't find them having to be refilled that often, but i don't have many rats right now.

http://www.petco.com/Assets/product_...125619829C.jpg

[pavlovk1025]

I had to put that one in my female growout tank, so there's about 15 girls in there or so right now. They get thirsty lol. The last bottle I linked is the cheapest and weirdest in design, but its the only one I have that features a spring that pushes the ball forward. I like it, works well but is kind of weird to set up as it is made for those plastic rodent environments where you just stick the bottle in straight down.