Advice on a rescue CPQ.

[ButtonNomies]

Hey guys so I took in a rescue male CPQ yesterday. He supposed to be 8 months old yet is tiny n the size of my juvies

Hes settled really well with my other bachelors. But I'm worried his growth was stunted. He definately has his adult colour (silver red-breasted) so he's definately not a juvie.

He came with the feed they had been giving him. Which is quail layers pellets. I asked what other stuff they had been feeding him n it was just that since hatch. No other outside food.

Hes literally dove into the mixed seed that all my others are on (it's a balanced seed/crumb feed especially for buttons. Heritage.) And my boy Billy has been offering him mealworms, (I think he's in love with him)

Hes also extremely flighty, I know quails are flighty birds anyway but this is extreme. Not even my most timid of my birds act like this. There's a lot of force to his flightiness too.

Is there anything I can give him to give him a growth boost or is he always going to be tiny? I'm hoping his flightiness calms down being with the other boys and seeing the way they interact with me etc.

Here he is with Billy Boy ... am calling him D'Artagnan or Dart for short ❤

 

[BrandonsBirbs]

He came with the feed they had been giving him. Which is quail layers pellets. I asked what other stuff they had been feeding him n it was just that since hatch. No other outside food.

There's nothing really wrong with only feeding him a layer feed, however he shouldn't have been fed it from hatch that could be a reason he has stunted growth. Pellets are a complete diet and don't need anything added.

Is there anything I can give him to give him a growth boost or is he always going to be tiny? I'm hoping his flightiness calms down being with the other boys and seeing the way they interact with me etc.

He can just be especially small, sometimes people's birds are smaller due to unselective breeding, other people's are larger due to selective breeding.

This seems like it's due to low protein feed from birth and as he is already 8 months he won't grow any more. You may be able to beef him out a bit with higher protein food (eggs/starter crumbs), but it would just be adding on weight not growing.

 

[ButtonNomies]

There's nothing really wrong with only feeding him a layer feed, however he shouldn't have been fed it from hatch that could be a reason he has stunted growth. Pellets are a complete diet and don't need anything added.

He can just be especially small, sometimes people's birds are smaller due to unselective breeding, other people's are larger due to selective breeding.

This seems like it's due to low protein feed from birth and as he is already 8 months he won't grow any more. You may be able to beef him out a bit with higher protein food (eggs/starter crumbs), but it would just be adding on weight not growing.

Thankyou for this, thts what I thought tbh, I dont mind him being small I just hope it hasn't caused him any issues as he ages. Xx

 

[The Birb King]

Thankyou for this, thts what I thought tbh, I dont mind him being small I just hope it hasn't caused him any issues as he ages. Xx

Wow that must be cool to have a button quail even smaller than normal. How old is he now?