Brooder material

[littledel]

What kind of material do you put in for your baby quail to walk around on. I was told that pine shavings were bad and would kill the baby quail, is this true. I will be have some hatch in a couple weeks and want to make sure they are safe.

 

[bfrancis]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/624981/pine-pellets-the-circle-of-life

Here is a good discussion on bedding.

For the quick answer to your question, don't use anything slick, like newspaper, it can cause splay legs. NEVER use cedar, it will kill your quail regardless of age.

 

[jbobs]

I use either terry cloth or non-skid shelf liners in the brooder for the first few days and then switch to pine shavings. I know people say that pine is the pits but I have never found it to have any detrimental affects on my birds. As long as it's not really dusty stuff. Aspen and birch and other hardwood shavings are the best but they are more expensive. You can also use hay but it is not absorbent and has to be cleaned very frequently. Pine pellets can also work but they soak up water like a sponge and puff up when wet so if you spill a bit of water from the waterer it makes a mess. And yes, cedar is very irritating to most animals and should never be used. Newspaper and other slick papers should never be used. Clumping cat litter should never be used (I would think all cat litter would be inappropriate)