So Sad! - Page 2

That's so exciting!
I'm very happy for you and for your little homing quail!

Stay close to home and maybe you will retrieve them all! And as far as the people that offered to pay for them, you should have made them pay. How else will they get the message to keep a better eye on their children! I would have sent them a bill for materials to build the pin, food they eat their entire life and the cost of the birds at this age not chicks! And I might have sent them an estimated bill of my labor on the birds. I might not have collected any money but I sure would have put it in writing to them! Get my drift?

Super happy your flock came home, well most of them, there is always a wild one in the bunch and he took his woman with him...they still may come home!

Could be the touch of freedom brought back some natural instinct to be in pairs only and the males would fight over the territory and females. Glad you have them separated. The males feathers will regrow but it takes time.

I had escapees also and build a cone out of mesh wire, kind of like a lobster trap. I cut a hole into the side of their cage, just the size of the large end of the cone. When the quail inside called, the loose ones came back and eventually all went back into the cage. The openings were about 6" diameter on the large end, and 4" on the small. I have Valley quail, so you may have to adjust size. You may even capture a few wild wild ones!

Look up recall cages on the internet. That's where I learned this.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jak2002003 

 

 

I have moved the cage inside my chicken run, which has a padlock on the door, so no more accidents.  I am going to get locks for my finch aviary tomorrow.

 

 

I have been told by the quail experts here not to mix chickens with quail.  They told me that the chicken can infect the quail with diseases they can not fight as they have no immunities against those diseases that the chicken carry.  You may need to find another spot for the quail.  Maybe those quail experts can add their advice on this one?

Quote:

Originally Posted by jak2002003 

Well I got 4 back from the 6 birds.  I don't think the other pair will come back, but they should be OK as my area has very few predators and no cats, so I hope they enjoy their wild life.

 

Strange thing with the ones that came back is now they hate each other and are fighting badly.  One male ripped the feathers off one male and females head. So now I divided the cage in 2.

 

No idea how it was possible but one male got badly injured with feathers and skin pecked off his head, and blood all over his face.  They were really fighting through the wire - don't know why he did not back down!  I have put a solid partition in now.

 

Strange that happened!?  They got along great before that.  Now each side has its own dust bath and next box and they have all calmed down.  Maybe they might breed now they are each in pairs?

 

Will he grow his feather back on his head, or will he stay bald?  Its stopped bleeding and does not seem to be bothering him.

 

I will update on here in the future if anything exciting happens with them!

Could be one of the ones that didn't return kept the others in line. We had a male that used to peck all the others, curiously all the females stopped laying after he died. It's probably just a fight for dominance.