Water bottle and poop

[user 17911]

It's been a while since I last posted here but I have some questions again, what kind of water bottle is best for chins? (Glass, plastic? Brand, Kaytee? Something else? How big does the water bottle have to be? (Example, 12 oz, 6 oz, ect.) And do their poop stink? If not then if their poop does end up smelling should they go to the vet?

 

[Amethyst]

Glass is best so they can't chew it, as for the brand it seems you kind of seems to depend more on the bottle itself, some are good other leak. I have had luck with the Living World bottle I have and have only had bad luck with Kaytee bottles but others have be more lucky. I know that doesn't really help, lol. The size bottle depends on how many chins you have, if you only have one then a 6 oz bottle should be big enough, I have a 12 oz bottle but that is because I used to have two chins in that cage. Chins only drink on average 1-3 oz a day and you want to change out the water and clean the bottle at least one of twice a week (some people change it daily) to keep it fresh.

Their poop shouldn't stink, so yes if it's wet, soft, or stinky that is a sign they are sick and need to see the vet. Healthy poop does have a faint poop smell to it when fresh and is slightly damp, but you have to really put it up to your nose to smell it and by the time it's cold should be hard.

 

[Jawramik]

You definitely want a water bottle that's chew-proof. In other words, a glass bottle with stainless steel cap and sipper nozzle. I have two bottles, one on each level of my chin's cage. One is a 6 oz. Lixit brand, and the other is a 12 oz. Living World brand. I like both, I don't think one brand is necessarily better than the other. The Living World bottle is a little easier to use, as the cap and sipper nozzle are all one piece, you just screw it on and then can adjust which way the nozzle faces. The Lixit bottle closes up with two pieces, it has a sort of rubber stopper that goes underneath a metal screw cap, and while you can adjust the direction of the nozzle, it's a little more difficult than the Living World bottle. Both are perfectly functional, but I think the design of the Living World bottle is a little more user-friendly. Like Amethyst, I haven't had good luck with Kaytee bottles. They've always seemed to either leak like crazy or not dispense water at all. So yeah, based on my experience, I'd recommend Living World, followed by Lixit.

EDIT: Having two bottles for one chin is not really necessary, I just happened to have two that worked, so I opted to put one on each level of her cage. She mostly only drinks out of the one on the top level, and that 6 oz bottle will last her a week (it would last a little longer, but I never let it go longer than a week before cleaning it out and putting fresh water in it). For a one chin, a single 6 oz bottle would be just fine.

And as Amethyst said, chin poo really shouldn't smell. I haven't noticed a smell to it even when it's fresh, though admittedly I've never put my nose right up to a fresh turd. When fresh it will be ever so slightly damp, but within a short time it should be totally dry and hard. Any wet, loose, or smelly poo can be a sign of a health issue and requires a vet visit. Sometimes too many treats, or the wrong kind of treats, can cause slightly squishy poo, but that should clear up in a day or so once you stop giving those treats and have the chin eating just pellets and hay. If squishy poo persists, or if it's really runny and/or smelly, that's a sign of a more serious problem and the chin should be seen by a vet ASAP.

 

[Phil]

In my experience the material doesn't matter ref chewing as the chins can't get their teeth into it anyway. This said I use glass bottles with stainless stell fittings as I suspect that anything plastic will negatively affect the water taste and harbour microflora that cannot be easily removed by normal cleaning.

 

[Amethyst]

I haven't noticed a smell to it even when it's fresh, though admittedly I've never put my nose right up to a fresh turd.

I only know that because someone was asking me questions and were worried because everywhere says the poop shouldn't have an odor but apparently when they smelled their chin's fresh poops they had a faint smell if you pick them up still warm and sniff them.

 

[user 17862]

I started with a bottle and had the frustrating issue that the bottles leaked... It was a metal-bead bottle and both of the ones I had bought had the exact same issue, dripping every couple of seconds, making me anxious about getting the chins wet
I kinda gave up on them completely because of it and used a bowl kinda as a passover - if you use a heavy ceramic bowl and put it in a spot in the cage where they wont accidentally run into it, it works pretty well!

Our local petstore stocked up on rodent items recently and i found one of these bottles - and im really in love with them!
They work with a pin that the animal pushes up with their tongue instead of a metal ball and they absolutely don't drip
While made of plastic, i found it to be a non-issue since you attach it to the outside of the cage where they cannot chew on it. And the thick rubber cord holds it snug in place - i recommend it highly!

So yea a lot of text for me to say consider pin instead of bead bottles xP
And yea absolutely no poo smell, occasionally a little pee smell when they go somewhere they shouldn't but its very bearable

 

[Amethyst]

Just a few comments on that no drip bottle mentioned, not all chins can figure out how to use them. I had one I got for my chins and neither one could figure out how to use it so I had to go back to the normal metal ball style. I really wish they were able to use it because they don't leak.
Also if you go with plastic make sure you have bar spacing too small for them to stick their nose out, or stick a board on the cage to block them access to the bottle. I have had chins chew plastic bottles that were outside the cage in the past so just because it's outside the cage doesn't seem to deter them, if it's physically possible then just because they haven't yet doesn't mean they never will.

I also personally wouldn't use a bowl unless it's a last resort and supervised only I would not leave it in the cage, too much of a risk in my opinion. To keep it clean you would have to pretty much constantly change out the water throughout the day you don't want them drinking water that has poop in it, not only gross but you risk them getting sick. Also you run the risk of the chin stepping in it even if it's in a corner, which risks them getting wet and possibly getting sick or a fungal infection if you don't notice and dry them right away. Another thing, although it was probably a freak accident, chins can drowned or breath in water much easier with a bowl, it happened to a chin of someone I knew. It's up to you though but personally I think it's safer to just find a bottle that works instead.

 

[HaXena]

I started with a bottle and had the frustrating issue that the bottles leaked... It was a metal-bead bottle and both of the ones I had bought had the exact same issue, dripping every couple of seconds, making me anxious about getting the chins wet
I kinda gave up on them completely because of it and used a bowl kinda as a passover - if you use a heavy ceramic bowl and put it in a spot in the cage where they wont accidentally run into it, it works pretty well!

Our local petstore stocked up on rodent items recently and i found one of these bottles - and im really in love with them!
They work with a pin that the animal pushes up with their tongue instead of a metal ball and they absolutely don't drip
While made of plastic, i found it to be a non-issue since you attach it to the outside of the cage where they cannot chew on it. And the thick rubber cord holds it snug in place - i recommend it highly!

So yea a lot of text for me to say consider pin instead of bead bottles xP
And yea absolutely no poo smell, occasionally a little pee smell when they go somewhere they shouldn't but its very bearable

What kind of bottle is that? Is it a particular brand or just the style of bottle that makes the difference ? Thx!

 

[Amethyst]

What kind of bottle is that? Is it a particular brand or just the style of bottle that makes the difference ? Thx!

This looks like this one https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004MYKMS0/ref=twister_B0B4BRMTQH?_encoding=UTF8&th=1 but there are other brands that make them it's a valve style so instead of licking a ball at the end of a spout to get water out like a regular bottle the chin has to push a small metal pin inside the spout to release the water. It really is a great design if your chin can figure out how to use it.