button quail night jumping

[AZ Birds]

yeah i was thinking about putting a door on the front and close it a night to see if that works im currently working on the netting just before the roof of the cage to keep down injuries to. the only thing they have is the wooden 10in x 10in house and wood shavings through out the cage. wow your quail look so peaceful, im jealous i wish mine were like that.

 

[onewithquail]

The only thing else maybe I can think of is that thye were housed inside and the outdoors is unfamiliar to them, also to sex them it's really easy besides the rusty breast...take the bird in hand and gently press either side of privates(lack of better word) lol...when you press from either side you will see a white foam apear if it is a male....also males have like a little pipley like thing and females don't...the foam though is the easiest way to tell....luck either way with the head bumping, and I agree with one member saying to add some kind of foam padding on the roof...

 

[AZ Birds]

The only thing else maybe I can think of is that thye were housed inside and the outdoors is unfamiliar to them, also to sex them it's really easy besides the rusty breast...take the bird in hand and gently press either side of privates(lack of better word) lol...when you press from either side you will see a white foam apear if it is a male....also males have like a little pipley like thing and females don't...the foam though is the easiest way to tell....luck either way with the head bumping, and I agree with one member saying to add some kind of foam padding on the roof...

well took your advice but felt a little weird about doing it lol. the blue one had two pimple like things in the bottom of its private but no foam came out. then i try checking the other and it slipped right through my hands and flew away and me being wheelchair bound and having an acre of land took me a while to get her back lol. soon as i got her back though checked her and she seem to have a bigger hole (private part) with no pimple like things at the bottom.

 

[nurse_turtle]

A few branches and slabs of bark or a couple artificial sprays of greenery for them to hide under may help them calm down. I hatched mine from eggs and their brooder was a glass aquarium and now their home is, so they are used to seeing me daily and only spaz out if I have to handle them for some reason. VERY hard to hold onto...squirmy buggers!

 

[AZ Birds]

just got done putting fake ponsettas (red christmas flower bush) or how ever you call them in the cage. they were just laying around so figure its worth a shot.

 

[jaymean]

I've been having the same problem. The quails were getting spoiled at night even though they are inside. Their heads were getting ripped open every night. I ended up leaving a small desk lamp on and it seemed to have solved the night jumping issue. My girls haven't laid eggs since though. I'm afraid they aren't getting enough sleep.

 

[DK newbie]

I have the issue as well. Currently it's mainly a male who's living alone that does it. He doesn't seem stressed about living alone during the day - no calling or anything. But he's only 3 ft away from the nearest cage with buttons, so even if he usually can't see them I guess he knows they are there. He's not getting hurt from it though - knock on wood - but I can't imagine it's good for him nor the others to have him boinking for hours on end every night.
I've previously had a trio that did it as well - but only when the light was on in the yard outside their window. They didn't do it in complete darkness. So I think there is an area between 'being able to see next to nothing' and 'being able to see almost everything' that causes boinking at night. I have to keep a light on now, because I have budgies as well and if there is no light at all, they get night frights. It's pretty annoying. I've ordered a blue led light which I hope will give a light strong enough to keep both budgies and buttons calm without disturbing either of the birds so much they can't sleep, but we'll see. Currently I have a dimmable lamp that I turn on enough for the lonely button to see 'almost everything' and then I have a cloth partially covering the other cages so they are not disturbed more than they have to. It doesn't completely solve the problem, but it significantly reduces it.

 

[jaymean]

Yikes! I'm glad to hear your quails aren't getting hurt. Mine lose their head feathers and one has a scab on its head that keeps healing and then opening up (from flying upward again). Last night, I tried switching to a night light because I was afraid the desk lamp I'm currently using is too bright. They ended up flying upward again. I switched back to the desk lamp and it stopped. They seem very active at night. I plan on padding the cage today.

 

[Rabbitapril]

Wow, you were lucky to catch your little bird again, I thought you were going to say it was lost.
Iv never looked at my quail ( coturnix) private parts, but fortunately I know who the male is so I will save that delight for another day.

 

[Binki]

I had a hen in my pet group that wouldn't settle at night when I moved them indoor for the winter.

I tried covering them with a dark blanket but I couldn't keep a light on so I made sure to not use hard materials in the cage (cardboard boxes) and netted the top of it so she would bounce into it and back down. She stopped after a few weeks - I guess she got comfortable? She was never scared or skittish during the day.