# good bacteria/microbes & chlorinated water



## ace in the hole (Nov 27, 2007)

Back 17 years ago when I raced the thing was to put a tablespoon of chlorine bleach in the water. This would disinfect the water and help stop the spread of disease. Now most of us have chlorinated water. 

I have just finished medicating my birds and am giving them a pro-biotic. I was told not to use chlorinated water when giving the pro-biotic or the chlorine would kill the good bacteria/microbes I am trying to put back into my birds.

My questions are, 

Is the chlorinated water most of us are giving our birds now killing the good bacteria they need?

Was I ruining the condition of my birds in the past by giving them Bleach in their water?

How will I know when the birds digestive track is back to normal after medication or stress?

Can you tell by the stool?

Mark


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## hillfamilyloft (Jun 22, 2005)

Ace 
What I have found from reading about this subject is hit on in this article. If makes total sense to me. I do not know how the clorine reacts to inorganic substances but it will kill many organic ones. 

The author speeks of filtering water during medication, and using tap water with clorine the other times of the year. A simple carbon filter on your fridge water will remove the clorine. 

Because I do not race, I use antibiotics on an as needed basis. Which has only been twice in four years. Once for preventative and the other for one sick bird. It has been three years since I have had any thing that has resebled sickness. I think the dry climate helps, not bringing in outside birds, and clean water and feed all have helped. 

I do give my birds clorinated water. 

I once saw a show showing how watering your yard with a sprinkler removes the clorine from the water before the water reaches the ground. 

The Janssen Brothers always gave their birds well water. Maybe they were on to something. 

http://www.pigeonnetwork.com/articles/usa/chlorinated_tap_water.html

Randy


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## kalapati (Aug 29, 2006)

"Was I ruining the condition of my birds in the past by giving them Bleach in their water?"


if your birds THROAT, TRACHEA & DIGESTIVE LINING turns white then maybe yes...lol



kalapati


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## Kimberly_CA (Jan 5, 2008)

If you leave water sitting for 24 hours all the chlorine will dissipate into the air. It happens pretty fast with chlorine. Thats why ya gotta add it to pools so often or have a constant supply floating around in one of those duckies.


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## ace in the hole (Nov 27, 2007)

Thank you for that link Randy. I'm glad I got this information before I started medicating the 08 young birds.

Mark


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

These are good questions...


'flouride' which is added to almost all public Water anymore, is also a potentially grave concern.


My own acceptance, is that for our Birds, and for ourselves, we would do best to avoid any or all 'public water' which has been 'treated', and, either get sophisticated 'filters' to make it safe, or, to buy Water which is authentically 'good' from Businesses which purify it.


The Water Engineers I used to know ( moved away now ) would not even eat a Potatoe or Noodle which had been boiled in Tap Water...would not drink ANY Coffee or Tea made with Tap Water, and in short would not allow ANY Tap Water to enter their body by drinking, whatsoever...as well as they seriously advised one NEVER take other than very VERY short, 'cool' showers, and as seldom as possible at that, on these kinds of Water.


There is a lot of Science showing how correct they were in these assertions.

Where, the cynicism, stupidity or possible intent, of the quality of Water anymore from any public Water System, is extremely bad, dangerous and unsafe.


Male 'Breast Reduction Surgery' is only one of many things associated with this, where, here in the US, and in Europe also, Men are getting such large 'breats' from female Hormones IN the Public drinking water, that a whole industry is mobilizing to provide their relief via Surgery...as Fish, Frogs and other Animals who also drink these Waters, or, who drink them in the 'natural' lakes or other reserves the Public Water Systems allow all of their sewage to go into, also are showing fantastic spikes in sexual abnormalitys from these Hormones which get passed into the Water through urine, and are not removed by the treatmens plants or chemicals.

Autism is 'up' 4000 percent in the last decade is it?

Granted, all the regular foods are bad also, but between the foods, and the Water, BOTH are 'bad' anymore in many ways.


Similarly, are Chlorinated Hydrocarbons of all sorts, from run-off from streets, driveways or other sources, where, Oil or other petroleum residues get processed with Chlorine treatments, making stable and highly carcinogenic Molecules wnich everyone then drinks and bathes in, which also adversely effect the Nervious systems of anyone drinking that Water.


Take a 'Hot' Shower, open up all those millions of 'pores' in your skin, and you are absorbing these things, and other things too...lots of other things too...


Anyway...

Bad for people...bad for Birds...

But anyway, far as it goes, 'flouride' and 'chlorine' are not freindly Molecules to Living Systems, even if 'Bleach' or Chlorine is a very good disinfectant, or, a pro-tem means of trying to assure that nothing much will Life in Water...it also makes sure to do it's work, such as it can, in whoever drinks it, as well as colmbining with other molecules in the Water already, to make new, and potentially inimical Chemicals which will not be nice to the System injesting them.



Love, 


Phil
l v


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## roxtar (Aug 21, 2006)

I worked at a water treament plant for a brief period of time and I can tell you that the stuff that comes out of "untreated" water...... Well, let's just say that it makes great fertilizer- and there's no way that they can remove ALL of it. That's why they have to put chlorine or chloramine in it; to kill off what they can't filter (centrifuge) out. 
Chlorine will evaporate at high temps., so if you don't feel like dropping the dough on a high dollar filtration system you can always just boil your water for a few minutes then let it cool before giving it to the birds. I don't see how all the chemicals that are in tap water can not affect medications that you put in it.


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## Jazzman (Dec 15, 2007)

So let me get this straight, if we want to give the birds a probiotic, we'd better not be adding it to chlorinated tap water as the "good" chlorine will kill our "good" bugs ?


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## ace in the hole (Nov 27, 2007)

Yes, Jazzman, that is right!!

Now, what I would like to know is, is this chlorinated water we are giving the birds (and adding bleach to their water), other than when we medicate, actually hindering the good bacteria that is already in our birds? Could this type of water actually be keeping some of our birds from coming into form???

What do you think? Or, the better question here is, what do you know? 

Please share with the rest of us!

Mark


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## learning (May 19, 2006)

Sorry, but I just don't get the whole chlorine in the water thing. I look at it this way. Would you give chlorine in the water for your own children? I know I sure wouldn't! That amounts to poisoning in my book. Why would you intentionaly poison your birds? This whole thing just doesn't make any sense to me but I guess to each his own.

Dan


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Jazzman said:


> So let me get this straight, if we want to give the birds a probiotic, we'd better not be adding it to chlorinated tap water as the "good" chlorine will kill our "good" bugs ?


If chlorine kills bad bacteria then it probably makes no distinction between good or bad, and you may be wasting probiotics in the water.

When I talk about giving pigeons clean water everyday, it not only means changing the water, and disinfecting the drinker itself, it means giving them water from a pure source, (no chlorine or fluoride), or any other toxic matter. If you use well water from source that hasn't been tested, that is not good either, it should be filtered. To that you can add the probiotics, or ACV or garlic on a regular basis.


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## k-will (Dec 15, 2007)

i had well water for all of my years flying pigeons until i moved to the new house.my answer to this is i am buying human grade drinking water from sams club and then i dont have to worry about it.

ace,its good you are thinking of all the things you are concerned about with your birds.i bet you will be a good flyer.


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