Chick with diarrhea once a day??

[FrankieAndJamie]

My quail chick has been having diarrhea once or twice every morning but then has solid poops the rest of the day. It's behavior is still normal and energetic, no visible symptoms of anything being wrong, but this is also my first quail and I only have one, so I don't have much to compare to. Could it be the food we're giving it, or drinking too much water at night? Please help, I want to make sure my bird stays healthy...

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Is the dropping you are seeing reddish brown and fairly runny--and more smelly than normal feces they pass?

 

[FrankieAndJamie]

It smells the same as usual but it's a much lighter brown than usual, a lot closer to the color of her food than the solids are and it's almost completely liquid

 

[TwoCrows]

Can you get a picture of the poop? If this is only happening once or twice a day, it is probably diet or stress of waking in the morning. But a picture of the poop could help confirm what it is.

 

[FrankieAndJamie]

I'll get a picture next time I see it, I've been cleaning it up to keep her from eating it.

 

[TwoCrows]

Keep us posted!

 

[FrankieAndJamie]

Okay so here's what her poops are looking like (except in the morning they are double this size and twice as frequent, which seems a little outrageous for a two week old quail):

The picture is a little hard to make out but it's pretty much all liquid. This afternoon she's dropped a couple of these and they have been a little stinky. How often should a gambel of her age be pooping? It seems like it never stops!

 

[TwoCrows]

That looks like Cecal poop. These are greasy and stinky. Birds will excrete these a couple times a day. Comes out of the Cecal pouch. Completely normal!

It never hurts to add probiotics to your birds water a few times a week. 70% of the immune system lies in the intestinal tract and lots of good bacteria in the tract will help to ward off harmful pathogens and other things that cause your birds to become ill of health. Probiotics really beef up the immune system.

Chicks are pooping machines. LOL Seems like they poop more than they eat!! But as they age and grow, the poop will slow down as the metabolism slows and the intestinal tract grows longer. As adults they poop far less.

 

[FrankieAndJamie]

Thank you! That makes us feel a lot better