Never used cattle waterer. Bought two of them, and just never used the second. These are the kind that you don’t need electricity to keep thawed. You bury a barrel or a stack of truck tires underneath and it brings the heat up from the ground to keep thawed. The one that we have setup always worked very well. I misplaced the drain plug for it so it’ll need an 1 1/2 plug, otherwise should be ready to go. Message me with any questions, thank you