Coturnix related. Am I doing something wrong?

[Naysa]

I got two coturnix hens yesterday.
They're in a cage in the spare room.
They've got food, water and a dust bath.
One's quite confident and one is a bit more weary.
I've seen them drink a little bit but they don't seem to eat or use the dustbath.
If I offer a treat they snatch it.
Sometimes they flip out for no reason. I'll be sitting there watching and they will freak and run around the cage.
Is this settling in or am I missing something?

 

[dc3085]

If you mean they pace back and forth when you are watching them, that is pretty normal. They are nervous birds and all quail tend to habitually pace when you approach the cage. They do get more used to your presence and can even be tamed completely. It could however be any number of things that are bothering them.

Galliformes eyes are tetrachromatic meaning they see more colors than something that is trichromatic (people). Your bird may be seeing something that bothers her but you don't notice. Flapping plastic or tarps seem to irritate them a lot, so look for environmental factors that could be bothering her.

If you have birds of prey flying over that can also cause them to flip. They are born knowing that hawks like to eat them.

If it keeps up and you can't solve it maybe try to move or re orient the cage. Again though if they are just pacing back and forth that will only be solved by them becoming more comfortable with you.

 

[Naysa]

They don't seem to pace. They will peck around calmly and sit down and then all of a sudden they will just freak out and run into their box.

Where they are at the moment thet cannot see out of the window so I'm not sure what's going on.