Digestion Problems?

[pineygchickens]

Do any of you feed grit to your quail. I have been feeding a locally made quail feed and lately have noticed that the manure still has what looks like cornmeal in it.

 

[Sill]

I don't give grit just for them to eat. I do vary the contents of my quails' dust baths so they do get sand sometimes and will eat some of it. I'm sure the little bit of sand they probably eat will help them break down any feed they otherwise might not be able to digest. If you are seeing undigested feed then give them some grit or sand. Undigested feed is money wasted.

 

[TwoCrows]

I would give them some sort of grit, either in the form of parakeet grit, dirt or sand. If you have a dust bathing area set up for them, which you should, they can find grit and tiny stones in these for the gizzard.

However not everything is completely digestible. There will always be food that birds cannot completely process. The gizzard is a muscle. Some birds have stronger muscles than others. However the more they eat hard foods, the stronger the gizzard becomes.

 

[pineygchickens]

Thanks for the info!