Broody Mama Quail

[Lemming]

Hi everyone!

This is my first post on this forum.

I have a jumbo Japanese Coturnix who has gone broody for the second time. The first time I got her some eggs, just to see & she actually raised & hatched 2 really well. That was last year.

She went broody again back at the end of Jan & this time I got her some button quail eggs (I’d like to give buttons a try).

Yesterday one hatched but sadly within w couple of hours it passed away. I think she smothered the little guy cos he was pretty flat. Apart from being a bit gutted I’m not sure what to do now. She’s still sitting on 4 unhatched eggs, but day 19 I’m starting to lose hope.

So my questions are, what should I do with her now? & also were buttons too small or was this just a sad accident? I watched her for a while, she seemed very at ease with him & she did great with the first 2.

If I can I’ll attach a pic of happier parenting!

 

[Lemming]

Here’s the poor little guy that didn’t make it!

 

[Plip]

Sorry about that Button chick. That's got to b disappointing! But having a hen that goes broody, that's really cool.

I don't know if having a big Jumbo hatch a little Button is practical or not, but I expect some of the more experienced members ( read: @JaeG ) will weigh in soon.

 

[Lemming]

Thanks Plip,

Initially I thought it would be ok because chicken hatch quail eggs etc, and someone said a quail hatched a zebra finch, and I imagine they're tiny, but then I thought maybe he was just far too small.

Yeah I was pretty gutted. I would have been ok with none of them hatching as the whole thing was a gamble, but I hadn't prepared myself for that.

I really wanted a black one too!

 

[JaeG]

Oh dear! I'm sorry - what a gorgeous little chick it was too!

A bantam chicken can certainly hatch quail eggs, but they are generally too big and clumsy to raise them without a lot of intervention (I have tried and it was exhausting making sure she didn't squish them when she wanted to get up and scratch about, and they just wanted to cuddle). Button chicks are initially very delicate and here's a photo of a newly hatched standard Coturnix compared to a newly hatched Button (plus two that are around 5 days old):

They are very different behaviour wise too. I do think a Jumbo is just too big to look after Button chicks safely, through no fault of her own. I've even had a Button mother squash a chick - that was after she'd let it wander off and get cold and I'd warmed it up, given it back to her, only to check later and find a dead chick squished under the other eggs, all of which had died earlier on during incubation.

If any more chicks hatch, especially if it's only one, I'd leave them with her and cross my fingers, but be prepared that something similar could happen. It's just that Buttons need company and they can die of loneliness, and having looked after a lone Button chick for a week until a friend hatched for it, it's a lot of work.

But it is fantastic that your girl will go broody. I'd get her a mate and let her raise some chicks of her own and hope she passes on that broodiness. It's great that she will raise them too - I've read stories of broody Coturnix that lose interest once it gets to the 'looking after the babies' bit.

 

[Lemming]

She was really good up until week 3-4 (can’t quite remember) last time, then she got a bit grumpy with them and I brought them in to look after.

I don’t think anymore will hatch tbh, day 19 & not a peep or pip in sight. She’s sitting tight though, any tips on how to break the broody trance?

I had a male but he was very aggressive with my girls & I had to rehome him.

I love them very much, but I don’t find them easy like I was told!

 

[JaeG]

They certainly can be a challenge socially! A good male shouldn't be aggressive and you certainly don't want to breed an aggressive boy because I do think temperament is genetic. It might be best to let her hatch out some chicks and choose the calmest, sweetest male to join the group, then he has been mothered too and should make a good father quail. Maybe.

When I had a bantam hatch and raise two Coturnix chicks, by 3 weeks old they really didn't need her anymore so it could be your girl was telling them they should be thinking about being independent.

 

[Lemming]

Actually, it was the male she hatched! He was a bit terrifying! He was quite happy when it was just him & his sister but once I mixed them in he was terrible with my girls. In fact he was really aggressive with me too, a real problem child!

I still have the female. All my girls are really mellow, one of them seems to enjoy a cuddle!

 

[Lemming]

I feel so bad for her