Coturnix Quail Basics- Information and Pictures Galore

[jennifleur]

Since you had them upside down for a time they might not be positioned correctly. I would tend to help them in this senerio because they could be completely healthy strong chicks and only having issues due to incubation user error. I understand completely the hands off hatching school of thought, letting mother nature weed out the weak or defective. Either way day, day 19 there is still a good chance for normal hatch. Hang in there.

 

[quail16]

I hope my eggs hach tommorow

 

[emcrowder]

Okaaaay so....whole new range of problems. I finally had chicks hatch today but only 5 of the 23 made it due to being upside down and unable to get out of their shells (some were just yolks though). So these chicks have kind of become a nightmare they are pecking each other trying to kill each other I'm pretty sure. I've put up a cardboard divider between the older two and the newest 3 I put in the incubator. I plan on getting a red light tomorrow to see if that will help but idk if it will. The other problem is when I leave the older two they do this loud screech until I come back I'm glad they like me but it is...12:40 am so yeah this is kind of crazy I'm sure they're about to wake the whole house up. Anyway why do they this? They've been going 30 minutes non-stop I would've thought they would give up and go to sleep by now. HELP!!!

 

[Lobzi]

Okaaaay so....whole new range of problems. I finally had chicks hatch today but only 5 of the 23 made it due to being upside down and unable to get out of their shells (some were just yolks though). So these chicks have kind of become a nightmare they are pecking each other trying to kill each other I'm pretty sure. I've put up a cardboard divider between the older two and the newest 3 I put in the incubator. I plan on getting a red light tomorrow to see if that will help but idk if it will. The other problem is when I leave the older two they do this loud screech until I come back I'm glad they like me but it is...12:40 am so yeah this is kind of crazy I'm sure they're about to wake the whole house up. Anyway why do they this? They've been going 30 minutes non-stop I would've thought they would give up and go to sleep by now. HELP!!!

Oh my...brain damage from developing upside down??? Lesson learned for all to check those eggs very carefully. They are so small and often looking a lot like marbles, pointy end is hardy recognizable. If you leave them to cry they will eventually stop. You just have to be patient and let them cry. Make sure the brooder is warm enough but with areas to escape to for a cooler place to hang out.

The cardboard barrier is fine but make sure on either side of the barrier both cool and warm environments are provided as well as food and water of course. I would not leave them separated too long though as you want them to get along together in the future Im guessing.

 

[rhondita55]

Another LOUD question. I'm a very newbie and have only had my chicks for 3 weeks. They are now 6 weeks old and I have 3 males and 4 females. 2 of the males crow and crow and crow..... especially at night and keep us up. I have them in a 2 tier rabbit hutch. Would it stop them from being so LOUD all night and day if I separate them? I have 1 white male and 1 white female, 1 light golden female and 1 male, the other male looks to be Tibetan and 1 tuxedo female that is dark and 1 5 week old that I'm not sure what sex it is yet.

The little white male is quiet. I would put them outside, but as noisy as the males are, I'm afraid it would bring in the coyotes. They are all over as it is. My chickens and ducks get really quiet when they are about.

 

[jennifleur]

Try sprinkling some chick starter on floor of brooder as well as in their dish. You also might try adding a tiny dish, the size of small food jar lid, of yolk soup.
Hard boiled egg yolk dissolved in warm water with pinch of sugar, few drops of apple cider vinegar a pinch of brewers yeast and sprinkle of crumbles. If you have poultry drench use that in place of the sugar. Don't leave it in there over a day, seems to go bad quickly.
They could be picking because of a deficiency of some sort or are just ready to start eating.
The peeping is often helped by making an artificial mommy. I use a small coated wire shelf organizer I had in my pantry and drape an old washcloth over it. Put it near the heat source. If they can be warm and feel safe snuggling under some sort of shelter they tend to be calmer. Some people use a heating pad with some sort of poop proof cover and attach that to the wire frame. Then the chicks can move in and out from under it as they would a mother quail. The peeping is a natural survival response. A baby quail in the wild needs to stay close to it's mum. A lost chick is a dead chick.

 

[jennifleur]

You will need either more females or to cull some of your males. 1 to 1 ratio is not good. Often males will settle down with the crowing when they have their harem of gals set up and can't see any other males. My males rarely crow now.

 

[Lobzi]

Another LOUD question. I'm a very newbie and have only had my chicks for 3 weeks. They are now 6 weeks old and I have 3 males and 4 females. 2 of the males crow and crow and crow..... especially at night and keep us up. I have them in a 2 tier rabbit hutch. Would it stop them from being so LOUD all night and day if I separate them? I have 1 white male and 1 white female, 1 light golden female and 1 male, the other male looks to be Tibetan and 1 tuxedo female that is dark and 1 5 week old that I'm not sure what sex it is yet.

The little white male is quiet. I would put them outside, but as noisy as the males are, I'm afraid it would bring in the coyotes. They are all over as it is. My chickens and ducks get really quiet when they are about.

If you have any sort of light on at night turn that out. My outside quail are pretty quiet and even my inside adult quail without light are quiet, just a crow once in awhile.

 

[rhondita55]

Thank you all for the advice. I did open up the top of the hutch and they are running up and down the ramp so they have a lot more room. The breeder had told me that if I had to many males that he would save some females for me. So guess I'll do that and then keep 1 male on top and 1 on the bottom.

I figured out the light thing last night. As soon as I turned EVERY light out, including the night light they shut up. But only for a bit. As soon as the DH got up at 4am to go to work, on with the lights and noise. LOL They are just such cute birds...........

Birds with Benefits

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Okaaaay so....whole new range of problems. I finally had chicks hatch today but only 5 of the 23 made it due to being upside down and unable to get out of their shells (some were just yolks though). So these chicks have kind of become a nightmare they are pecking each other trying to kill each other I'm pretty sure. I've put up a cardboard divider between the older two and the newest 3 I put in the incubator. I plan on getting a red light tomorrow to see if that will help but idk if it will. The other problem is when I leave the older two they do this loud screech until I come back I'm glad they like me but it is...12:40 am so yeah this is kind of crazy I'm sure they're about to wake the whole house up. Anyway why do they this? They've been going 30 minutes non-stop I would've thought they would give up and go to sleep by now. HELP!!!

I think hatching so late they are probably starving. run some of the feed in a food processor, you can even tap your finger on it to show them its food.

Another LOUD question. I'm a very newbie and have only had my chicks for 3 weeks. They are now 6 weeks old and I have 3 males and 4 females. 2 of the males crow and crow and crow..... especially at night and keep us up. I have them in a 2 tier rabbit hutch. Would it stop them from being so LOUD all night and day if I separate them? I have 1 white male and 1 white female, 1 light golden female and 1 male, the other male looks to be Tibetan and 1 tuxedo female that is dark and 1 5 week old that I'm not sure what sex it is yet.

The little white male is quiet. I would put them outside, but as noisy as the males are, I'm afraid it would bring in the coyotes. They are all over as it is. My chickens and ducks get really quiet when they are about.

The boys do crow a lot when younger, it lessens as they mature.

Thank you all for the advice. I did open up the top of the hutch and they are running up and down the ramp so they have a lot more room. The breeder had told me that if I had to many males that he would save some females for me. So guess I'll do that and then keep 1 male on top and 1 on the bottom.

I figured out the light thing last night. As soon as I turned EVERY light out, including the night light they shut up. But only for a bit. As soon as the DH got up at 4am to go to work, on with the lights and noise. LOL They are just such cute birds...........

Birds with Benefits

A cover over them would help, like folks cover a parrot cage.