Birds Have Died, What To Do

[birb-wife]

Hi, a couple of my partner's quail have died. It is my fault, I forgot to open them up this morning and I think the heat has killed them. Yes, I feel awful about it. He will want to eat them but won't be home for 8 more hours to clean them, what do I do?

 

[birb-wife]

We don't have enough space in fridge can I vacuum seal them and put them in a box of cold water? I have to keep them cold right?

 

[BarnyardChaos]

You need to chill the bodies to below 40-degrees F. Closer to freezing is better. So a box of cold water isn't enough - you'll need ice. They'll be fine in an ice chest or whatnot with a bag of ice. Quail aren't huge - maybe there are some things in the fridge you can move out for the day to make room? Condiments, beverages, cheese, etc.

 

[birb-wife]

You need to chill the bodies to below 40-degrees F. Closer to freezing is better. So a box of cold water isn't enough - you'll need ice. They'll be fine in an ice chest or whatnot with a bag of ice. Quail aren't huge - maybe there are some things in the fridge you can move out for the day to make room? Condiments, beverages, cheese, etc.

It's 35c today here we can't take much out fridge without ruining it, it's a small fridge on a good day to.. how quickly do I need to chill them after they have died? Thanks..

 

[BarnyardChaos]

Immediately. Find a way to get them on ice, or they will be spoiled quickly. Salmonella can set in as quickly as 2 hours at room temperature. Probably OK up to 4 hours, but NO MORE and it's taking a chance.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

Room in the freezer? Not ideal, but better than too warm.

 

[gimmie birdies]

We went to home depot and got a small chest freezer, it was only a couple hundred bucks, felt silly to complain about our freezer size, all these years.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

We went to home depot and got a small chest freezer, it was only a couple hundred bucks, felt silly to complain about our freezer size, all these years.

I feel silly when I tell folks we have four full size freezers, and three refrigerators with freezers. One for beef, one for pork and processed meats, one for chicken fish and game, and one for veggies, breads, and convenience/ready foods. One refrigerator is dedicated to eggs and beverages, with the freezer part for long-term storage baking supplies and broth, large cuts of smoked meat, etc.. Another refrigerator is empty most of the year, but during canning season and holidays it gets used heavily - the freezer part is full of french fries etc and the grandkids' freezer pops. The third is our daily use refrigerator, with all the ice cream, other goodies, and the week's planned menu in the freezer part.

We're on solar power, so cost to run all seven appliances is minimal to none.

If any one or two of these go down, we've got room to move food so nothing spoils. Got a good deal on a smoked hog? Bring it on! Processing 20 chickens at a time? We're ready!

 

[BrandonsBirbs]

It appears my partner made this account to create this thread, I said she could use my account. She did not manage to cool them within 2 hours and it was very hot therefore I don't see us eating them.

I arranged for a specialist to come out, she was very fast to respond and has taken some of the birds for testing. Her preliminary results suggested the deaths were possibly caused by avian flu and heightened temperatures. 22 of the 23 adults I kept in breeding pens have passed. I know very little about bird flu in quail but will be talking in depth with her about this.

It is a horrible day here and appears our 80+ chicks will be taken. This just feels so unfair.

 

[BrandonsBirbs]

I'm sorry, it has been a very long few weeks, I'm coming off a 12 hour shift and just wasn't prepared for any of this