any one want to help on rasing bobwhite quail ?

[1shotcleaner]

i am trying bw for the first time this year and its not going very well. i lost most of my first hatch to a coon and then to cannibalism. i have rased thousand of other birds and never had so many problems. i have about 50 new ones 2 weeks old and so far so good but i feel it wont last. what is the way to get thies birds going? ill take all advise as im lost with them.

 

[thekid]

Quote:
were did you get your bobs?

 

[Jimsbirdhouse]

You might try puting some lettuce in their pen sometimes this will help. Some people even put newspaper in the pen. This sometimes gives them something to do besides beating the POOP out of each other.

 

[Fat Daddy]

Quote:
Jims right, they will shred news paper or a cardboard box and have a big time at it. A sand box is important IMHO. But in the end, all roads lead to a pen thats big enough, or bits... If you have them in what they consider too crowded, they are gonna tear each other up. I find if they feel too crowded, they will constantly pace like "caged animal syndrome" in a circle. A happy bird does not do this. Once one is established as a underdog, its a free for all. It usually starts with toe or leg picking, and works up to feather or tail plucking. Then once you see blood you better get that bird out fast or hes dead... Good luck, Bill

 

[JJMR794]

WOW... BOBS... TAKE ALL YOUR PREVIOUS BIRD REARING KNOWLEDGE AND LOCK IT IN A CABINET SOMEWHERE UNTIL YOU GET THE HANG OF IT...CAUSE THEY DONT FIT ANY MOLD YOU'VE EVER WORKED WITH BEFORE

OFTEN TIMES PREVIOUS KNOWLEDGE CAN ACTUALLY MAKE THEM HARDER TO RAISE... THEY HAVE A RATHER STEEP LEARNING CURVE AS YOU HAVE FOUND.

SPACE AND TEMPERATURE CAN BE KEY ELEMENTS WITH THEM. AGRESSION STARTS AT ABOUT 3 DAYS OF AGE IN MANY CASES AND SIMPLY BUILDS THROUGHOUT THEIR LIVES

OVERCROWDING MAGNIFIES THIS 1000 FOLD

KEEP THE TEMPERATURE WARM ENOUGH TO PREVENT PILING, BUT IF AGRESSION KICKS IN COOL THEM DOWN A TAD... SEEMS ITS HARD TO FOCUS ON GOING OVER TO THE WATER FONT AND THROWING A BEATING ON GOOFY MORTY WHO HANGS OUT THERE IF YOU'RE TOO COOL.

REMEMBER... NO PILING, BUT NOT FAR FROM IT.

LIGHT DRIVES THESE GUYS AS WELL. RED HEAT LAMPS AND IN EXTREME CASES WHERE AGRESSION IS BAD MOVE THEM INTO A DARK ROOM AND DEPRIVE THEM OF ANY AND ALL WHITE OR BLUE SPECTRUM LIGHTING--- NOTHING BUT RED LIGHT

BITS ARE YOUR FRIEND. BITS DONT PREVENT THE OCCAISIONAL SLAP OF A BEAK TIP... BUT THEY DO GREATLY LIMIT THE AMOUNT OF DAMAGE THAT CAN BE INFLICTED AS ONCE INSTALLED THEY CANT CLAMP THAT SHARP POWERFUL TRIANGULAR BEAK DOWN ALL THE WAY... THIS LIMITS THE AMOUNT OF TRAUMA THEY CAN INFLICT, AND HELPS STOP FEATHER PULLING

DISTRACTIONS AS MEANTIONED PREVIOUSLY ARE VERY GOOD AS WELL, AND THE ADDITION OF HIDES (PLACES THEY CAN GO TO HIDE FROM ABUSERS

ULTIMATELY DESPITE ALL YOUR BEST EFFORTS AND INTERVENTIONS MANY TIMES THESE WILL FAIL AT TIMES TO VARYING DEGREES DEPENDING ON THE INDIVIDUAL BIRDS THEMSELVES AND THE CONSTANT CHRONIC POWER STRUGGLE OF PECKING ORDER... ALL I CAN SAY IS WELCOME TO BOBS AND BE READY FOR IT.

 

[_Randall_]

Quote:
Bingo. And also, if you can build a pen the size of Cowboys Stadium for those 50, that would help too!

 

[JJMR794]

EH MAY BE A TAD SMALL UNLESS YOU PUT SOME GOOD HIDES OR BRUSH PILES IN THERE

 

[_Randall_]

Quote:
Why of course, there should be a monster brush piles per every 500 sq. ft........lol

 

[7L Farm]

My adventure with Mr & Mrs Bob. First thing I did was build a big flight pen its 300 sq ft. I built this pen next to my 330 sq ft chicken coop which I'm told is a no no. But thus far its been good. I hatched 70 Bob Whites had them in a brooder for one week. I used the ECO 50 Brooder from Brinsea to provide the birds heat. After a week I moved the birds into the flight pen in a cage. So now the birds are in a cage within a cage with heat still provided. The birds now had all the space needed. They would spend alot of time in the smaller cage under the brinsea brooder but also could venture out & roam in the big pen which they did little by little. As JJ mentioned space is the key factor. Birds of this nature need alot of space. At 4 weeks I removed the heat they all had their feathers I also removed their cage. I added two big brush piles. I also added ledges on the side of the pen & various perches for them to get off the ground. I noticed that every evening they like to get on the perches together & whistle. They sleep in the run at night all huddled together I guess its cooler in the run. I guess this winter they will sleep in the covered part of the pen for heat will see. They spend their day under the brush pile under the covered part of the pen to stay out of the sun. I put a deck over the run when I built the coop as an observation tower. Glad I did because it provides needed shade for the birds. The birds are now 6 months old & seem very healthy.

 

[JJMR794]

They sleep in the run at night all huddled together

IN A WAGON WHEEL CONFIGURATION RIGHT? ALL BUTTS POINTED IN OR UP AGAINST AN OBJECT OR STRUCTURE, AND ALL BEAKS POINTED OUT...

THATS LISTED IN THE END OF CHAPTER 2 IN THE BOB SOP

IF FLUSHED FROM THIS RESTING POSITION THEY FLUSH IN A "FOUNTAIN SPRAY PATTERN" GIVES EVERYONE A CLEAR FLIGHT PATH WITH WHICH TO EGRESS THE PARTY IN URGENT FASHION