They can in a pinch. They really need game bird starter. They won't grow as big as they are supposed to if they don't get enough protein. Do you have any chick starter? That would be better than adult chicken food. What kind of food do you feed the chickens?
u need a 28 percent protien gamebird feed.if u cant get it use the highest protien u can find and if u need to break it up a bit in your food processer or blender. i have an old blender i use for the first few days just to make it a litte smaller and easier for them to eat.
I agree with Shelley, and if you absolutely cannot find game bird feed, buy a bag of kitten kibble (at walmart i buy the cheapest i can find personally) I grind it up with thier food, and give that to them daily (just about a half a handful of kitten kibble per daily feeding with their crumbles), and once a week I boil up an egg or two and chop it up for them to eat as well. I feed my quail game bird, but I still suppliment, and deffinatly if you can't feed game bird starter, you'll need to suppliment with a high protien source.
they should be on gamebird feed i agree and ground up. if the extra protein is needed meal worms and soybean meal is another way to get it into them. in pinches i always used chick starter it is better and closest thing for them next to gamebird starter. protein is needed for their rapped growth in order for them to keep up.
Can this feed be gotten at Tractor Supply? I've seen one that said Gamebird feed with a picture of a rooster on it, likely a game rooster I imagine. Is that it? Can the quail chicks eat that if they don't have gamebird starter?
I buy my feed at Tractor Supply a Dumor brand, it's 20% protien for chicks (so i suppliment with other protien sources). It has a picture of a chicken chick and a duckling on it and lists that it's for game birds such as quails. The adult version has a hen and a duck on it.
TSC has a 24 % game bird feed from dumor.
Purina mills has gamebird feed 28 % startena. I fed this to our Quail and I think Startena is the best way to go. They grow faster and are big and healthy. After 6 weeks we feed them layena and flockraiser. And they usualy start laying at 8 weeks.
Good luck . Merry christmas and a Happy new Year
We have tried Dumor and Startena and Startena wins.