Coturnix quail and HEAT.....??

[sniper338]

I need to start getting ideas on what to do once it starts warming up more... my birds are in a shed that is closed up 99.9% of the time unless we are in it doing something... it has a small 12inchx8inch or so vent on two side... then at the peak of the tin roof I cut it open good and it now has a vent there in the peak thats 12ft long by 4inchs wide for heat to excape (forget what those vents are called)...

Im in south texas... so pretty soon it will be getting pretty warm, then come summer it will be 100-106 degrees everday outside.... so in the shed it would get much hotter if I didnt come up with something...

I know the vent in the roof is going to help a ton... but what is about a max tempature that quail can handle??? If I leave a fan on inside to circulate air would that work? More vents in the shed to allow more air exchange? Some type of small stand alone ac unit? I have to try to save electricity as much as I can because the lights on for laying eggs soaks up a good amount already...

What do yall think....?

 

[TwoCrows]

Anytime it start to get over 100 degrees, birds can start to suffer and possibly die if they can't cool down. When they start to pant, and that is usually in the 90's, you need to take action or you can lose them.

The best thing you can do in your position, at least this is what I would do if I had your set up, is install water misters in the ceiling. Couple that with fans. The water cools, the fan helps to evaporate the water. Like a swamp cooler. I mist my birds when ever it gets over 90 degrees. I use a fans that constantly move and circulate the air. You will find them sitting as close to a fan as they can get and not get blown away. LOL

You can also feed them cool foods like watermelon, chilled quartered apples or peaches, put ice in their water. You can even freeze small containers in the freezer and stick them in the pens with the birds to radiate cool air.

I do all of these to keep my birds cool and I have never lost a bird yet. (keeping my fingers crossed!!!!)

If all else fails, you could always consider AC. Sheds can get pretty hot in the summer. I don't know if you will be able to keep this shed closed during the day and not kill these birds with over heating.

If you do find a bird that is suffering from heat stroke, get them inside the house to a cool area, mist them with cool water, offer lots of chilled water and generally if caught quick enough, they can survive.

So watch the temps. When they get into the 100's, these are dangerous temps and can kill.

 

[sniper338]

Sounds good. Thats what I needed to know... I hit 90 degrees in the shed yesterday and I did see a few birds panting, but not too bad. I was off work so I just left the door open on the shed and had no problems.

 

[dc3085]

Installing an attic fan would probably help. You can find them under $100 and they come with a thermostat you can adjust from 70-110 degrees. You could just set it at like 90 and it will kick on and run hard until the temp goes back down. Any fan would probably help but attic fans are made to work in high heat for years without failing on you. They turn over a lot of air so you might need to find a bit smaller one than the example Ill give you but it is hot in texas so maybe not.

I put this one in most often and have never had a service call on one.

 

[veggietreeigrl]

Oooh good tips, please keep them coming. I wish I could install misters, but my quail is indoors and we have no central a/c and the house is a rental, so we can't install anything permanent.

 

[dc3085]

Oooh good tips, please keep them coming. I wish I could install misters, but my quail is indoors and we have no central a/c and the house is a rental, so we can't install anything permanent.

You can make a mister that hooks up to your hose and just turn the hose on part way. It would be portable as heck really. You just use drip irrigation lines and get a hose fitting barb to put on the end and instead of irrigation drippers you use misters.

 

[veggietreeigrl]

Would something like this fan work for my quail's run? (We moved him outdoors now.)

http://www.amazon.com/Autocool-Sola...=1399062607&sr=8-5&keywords=solar+powered+fan

I know this particular brand got bad reviews, but if I bought a 5 star one do you think it would cool him down at all or just be a waste of money?