Coturnix Quail and the Cold

[le_bwah]

After almost three years of fretting over my quail's wintertime safety and comfort, I finally feel confident in their ability to weather the cold. These are a few things I've found helpful in helping quail remain comfortable in sub-freezing temperatures.

• Quail lose heat fastest through their unfeathered bits (read: feet). Piles of straw/other dry bedding create dry areas where they can warm up.
• Plastic sheeting/tarps are excellent windbreaks. But whatever you're tarping up, remember to leave an opening at the top to preserve airflow—condensation is the enemy.
• Any box/dome will trap heat and provide good shelter given that it's small enough to be heated efficiently by one or more birds.
• My quail go nuts for "birdie tea," essentially warm water (sometimes with a bit of electrolyte added). I give them their "tea" in the morning and when I change their water before dark.

Most of these seem like common sense, but I know there are people out there who, like me, worry about their birds' comfort in the cold and need to hear again that it is possible to raise Coturnix in climates with cold winters. Following the above steps, my birds have been active and alert down to the mid single digits. Any lower than that and I rotate stacks of warmed bricks through their little shelters—these let them pop in and out all day when they need to warm up. No shivering, happy birds.

Below is a video from this morning, our first snow of the season. It's about 30 degrees Fahrenheit out and most of the girls are as active as ever, scratching for their cracked corn. The scaredy birds are pacing in the back waiting for me to get out of their way .

If you have any other winter tips or warnings, please share. I'm always looking to make my quail more comfortable.

 

[Ravenlover]

See its stuff like this, this kind of experience and 3 years of worrying, so others who are starting and learning don't have to suffer all the errors and loses ty for your time and exp.

 

[le_bwah]

See its stuff like this, this kind of experience and 3 years of worrying, so others who are starting and learning don't have to suffer all the errors and loses ty for your time and exp.

You are welcome—I'm very much into the science-y aspect of keeping quail, and a big part of that includes sharing methods and results. Cheers!

 

[NY Coturnix]

Thank you for this advise. I'm approaching my first winter and have caught myself doing something with heat lamps that would probably cause more fire danger than good.

 

[le_bwah]

Thank you for this advise. I'm approaching my first winter and have caught myself doing something with heat lamps that would probably cause more fire danger than good.

I was worried about heat lamp safety too. But I'd frankly rather they hunker down and be a little chilly some nights than suffer a preventable fire.

However you swing it, hope your first winter goes well!

 

[Peristeria]

• My quail go nuts for "birdie tea," essentially warm water (sometimes with a bit of electrolyte added). I give them their "tea" in the morning and when I change their water before dark.

How do you make birdie tea? Thankfully it doesn't get too cold here but I still am worried for their first winter of lows of 45 F (I may seem weak to you northerners but it is still cold here I promise!! )

 

[le_bwah]

How do you make birdie tea? Thankfully it doesn't get too cold here but I still am worried for their first winter of lows of 45 F (I may seem weak to you northerners but it is still cold here I promise!! )

Hi! "Birdie tea" is just warm water, as hot as you can get it without feeling uncomfortable (I test a few drops on the back of my hand). My quail have learned to come running when they see their waterer steaming, with or without vitamins/electrolytes .

As long as you don't "shock" them with a quick temperature change (e.g. inside vs outside, heat lamp but the bulb burns out), they stand a good chance of acclimating to the cold. Good luck to you and your birds!

 

[Quailobsessed]

I've just come out of the cold season with my birds. Now into the extreme heat!

 

[le_bwah]

I've just come out of the cold season with my birds. Now into the extreme heat!

Honestly, heat is harder to deal with. I wish you luck and happy birds!

 

[Quailobsessed]

Honestly, heat is harder to deal with. I wish you luck and happy birds!

Yeah, especially 48 degree C heat! Last summer, on the really hot days, I had to bring all of my birds inside! (it stunk!). I had most of them in cages, but the chickens were just locked in the bathroom. My galahs decided it would be a good time to chew up a painting! Unfortunately, I lost three birds to the heat (one chicken, one japanese quail and one gouldian finch). I'll hopefully have a better plan this summer.

Good luck with the cold season!