Sows are among the most water-hungry animals on any pig unit, and never more so than through lactation, when the demands of milk production send daily water usage climbing. Get the drinkers right and you protect milk yield, litter growth and sow condition. Get them wrong and the problems show up fast in feed intake and performance. Choosing the right sow drinkers is not complicated, but it pays to match the type, the flow and the setup to the job. This guide walks through nipple and bite drinkers, bowl drinkers, why stainless steel earns its keep over plastic, and how to build a reliable drinking system that delivers fresh water without waste.
Water is the most important nutrient a sow has, and her needs peak in lactation because milk is largely water. Lactating sows commonly drink around 20 to 25 litres a day, climbing towards 40 litres in late lactation as the litter grows. That water feeds straight into milk supply, and AHDB notes that water intake during lactation directly affects milk yield.
When water runs short, feed intake and milk production both drop, and the piglets are the ones who suffer, which is why unrestricted access to clean drinking water matters more for sows than for almost any other class of stock. Warm weather adds pressure, since heat commonly reduces sow feed intake through the summer, making cool, fresh water and a good flow more important still. Getting the daily quantity right is the foundation everything else builds on.
For most sow housing, nipple and bite drinkers are the workhorse choice, and they are what most farmers reach for first. Our best-selling product is the 10094-3, a bite drinker in production for over 25 years, built from stainless steel and suited to sows, fattening pigs and weaners. It matches all of our half-inch brackets, so it is easy to install on fixed downpipes or height-adjustable brackets. Alongside it, the 10055 range gives you further bite drinker options, and you can compare these and the rest of our pig drinkers together in one place.
These drinkers operate simply. The pig takes the nipple in its mouth and bites or pushes to release water on demand, so water only flows when an animal is actually drinking. That on-demand action is what keeps wasted water low compared with open systems, delivering the amount required to each sow while cutting water losses across the batch. Flow matters as much as the drinker itself. AHDB recommends a flow rate of around 10 litres per minute for nipple drinkers, so the pressure holds up when more than one sow drinks at the same time. Where water is offered at or near the feeder, a well-set nipple keeps that combined feed and water point working cleanly without flooding the pen. The nipples themselves are easy to keep clean, and when one eventually wears, it is a quick, low-cost spare to fit.
Bowl drinkers suit some setups better. The 10059-5 is our sow-specific bowl, part of our wider range of pig drinkers, and many pigs drink readily and quickly from an open surface, taking a lot of water in one go. A self-filling bowl refills automatically as the sow drinks, using a valve to top up to a set level, so there is always water available without a tap left running. Bowls are handy where you want a visible water level to check at a glance. As with the nipple drinkers, keeping the bowl clean and the valve maintained keeps the water fresh and hygienic. Choosing between a bowl and a nipple comes down to your housing, your stock and how you manage the pen.
In the damp, knock-about world of a pig unit, materials matter. The 10094-3’s stainless steel construction shrugs off the corrosion, chewing and rough handling that shorten the life of many plastic drinkers. Stainless steel does not crack or craze the way worn plastic can, so there are fewer places for dirt and bacteria to gather, which helps you keep water clean and gives a real reduction in the risk of contamination. It wipes down easily, stays hygienic through busy farrowing rooms, and keeps working season after season. That durability is where the value sits: a drinker designed to last is cheaper over its life than one you keep replacing, and it means less maintenance and fewer surprises. Over 100 years of building drinkers has shown us that a robust drinker is a reliable one.
A drinker is only as good as what supports it, and this is where a complete drinking system pays off. We stock a full range of mounting brackets in half-inch and three-quarter-inch, plus height-adjustable single and double brackets, so a drinker can be set and later adjusted to the right height for the stock using it. Correct heights matter, because a sow, a weaner and a piglet each need their drinker at a different level, and height-adjustable brackets make that simple. To install, you drill and secure the bracket to a wall or downpipe, fit the drinker and connect the supply.
Our Y-piece runs two drinkers from a single supply where sows share a water line, and we stock stainless steel pipes, downpipes and a pressure reducing valve to control the pressure feeding your nipple drinkers. For the youngest stock, our piglet drinkers and the guidance in our piglet hydration article will help you set access height correctly for piglets. Buy the drinker and the fittings together and you will find the whole system works as it should from day one.
Sorting the right sow drinkers before farrowing is far easier than reacting once sows are already drinking short. With over 100 years’ experience, we hold high stock of drinkers, brackets, pipes and spares as a genuine one stop shop, and we supply the wider livestock and cattle range too, so you can source everything from one place. If you would like help choosing the right nipple or bowl drinker and drinking system for your unit, contact Fisher Drinkers. You will find the full line-up on our pig drinkers page, backed by same day response to enquiries, fast delivery across the UK, and practical advice from people who know livestock.
