Can you feed Quails ACS

[Habibs Hens]

wanted to know can quails be fed ACS medicated feed???

Thanks

 

[TwoCrows]

If it is gamebird food, something with 24% to 30% protein, it can be fed to quail, medicated or not.

 

[Habibs Hens]

If it is gamebird food, something with 24% to 30% protein, it can be fed to quail, medicated or not.

Thanks

I asked this as quail feed is hard to find with high protein in UK

so I was going to get 20% chick crumbs which is ACS (the one I get is ACS) and top it up with 10% protein supplements to bring it to 30%

 

[Sycamore27]

I wouldn't feed food medicated for chickens. Personally I avoid medicated feed altogether, but feeding something with medication for a different animal can be lethal. Quail have a faster metabolism and will eat more for their weight than a chicken would, thus getting a higher intake of medication and likely being poisoned. Un-medicated chick starter with dried crushed mealworms or crumbled boiled egg would probably be okay if you have no game bird food available.
Good luck,
Jessie

 

[veggiecanner]

To figure protein, add the percentages together for the feed then divide by how many pounds you have.
So 1 pound of 20 percent feed and one pound of 10 percent feed would be 15 percent protien, not 30 percent.
to get 30% feed you would have to mix 1 pound of 20 percent feed with 1 pound 40 percent feed.
I don't know what that would be except meat , or eggs. Milk? bugs.?
Feeding quail is hard.

Here this will probably explain it better than I did.
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/livestk/01618.html

 

[Habibs Hens]

I wouldn't feed food medicated for chickens. Personally I avoid medicated feed altogether, but feeding something with medication for a different animal can be lethal. Quail have a faster metabolism and will eat more for their weight than a chicken would, thus getting a higher intake of medication and likely being poisoned. Un-medicated chick starter with dried crushed mealworms or crumbled boiled egg would probably be okay if you have no game bird food available.
Good luck,
Jessie

yes you have a very valid point there

To figure protein, add the percentages together for the feed then divide by how many pounds you have.
So 1 pound of 20 percent feed and one pound of 10 percent feed would be 15 percent protien, not 30 percent.
to get 30% feed you would have to mix 1 pound of 20 percent feed with 1 pound 40 percent feed.
I don't know what that would be except meat , or eggs. Milk? bugs.?
Feeding quail is hard.

I was aware of that and that is why I calculated Crumbs at 20% and protein powder at 100% pure protein would mean I only need 10 grams per 1kg feed to bring it upto 30%

btw a good source of protein is Soybean meal at 32% not cheap though

 

[Sycamore27]

For simpler calculations you might pick up a 40% protein supplement, sold for nursing pigs and sheep and grind that smaller. Bound to be a bit more nutrient balanced than mixing protein powder.
That's provided, of course, that it isn't just as impossible to find in your area as game bird food is!
I have also heard of pond stock fish food as a good protein supplement.

I was so happy to find the feed store in my home town about an hour away had un-medicated game bird starter in stock after two months of waiting on the local feed shop to get a special order in and never calling me on the day of the week they claimed it would finally show up each week that they told me "next week"!

Cheers,
Jessie

 

[veggiecanner]

At what point do you dilute the vitamin and minerals in the chick feed?

Honestly I don't know much about protien powders, do they have added vitamins and minerals.
I just got my quail and at this point I am afraid to give treats because I might decrease their protien intake.

 

[Sycamore27]

At what point do you dilute the vitamin and minerals in the chick feed?

Honestly I don't know much about protien powders, do they have added vitamins and minerals.
I just got my quail and at this point I am afraid to give treats because I might decrease their protien intake.

If I had to fashion together a ration out of less than optimum foods I would put a vitamin supplement in the birds water unless the analysis of all the foods matched up and was thorough enough to satisfy me that they had the right balance compared to a game bird starter. I'm not sure what type of protein powders the OP was talking about, but that would be my fear too if it has lots of things other than protein in it. Also, trying to patch things together sometimes you just have to do the best you can with it and see how the birds do on it. If they grow well at the right rates and don't have elevated occurrence of illness than you're doing pretty decent.

Dried meal worms would be a good way to balance any vegetable treats you give your quail for protein displacement in their diet, but if you are really nervous about it I would just skip giving them treats and give them mentally stimulating things instead. Dust baths, hides to explore, a laser pointer to chase, cat balls, and such things. They may or may not like all of them, but at least your mind will be more at ease.

Cheers,
Jessie

 

[Habibs Hens]

the person I got my eggs from said they feed standard chicken chick crumbs as even they had difficulty getting quail feed

they say its been working good for them

what the opinion here (chick crumb here is 19%)

also if I continue on chick crumb then what do I need to add apart from oyster shell to bring it to layer specs

what I don't want to do is feed layers mash as that's only 16% and far too little