dirt to wire

[the outdoorsman44]

I need to elavate my quail cage and to do so i need to go from dirt to wire.
What is the difference in dirt and wire to the birds?

 

[TwoCrows]

Of course the birds will prefer the dirt over wire, being more natural to them. Dirt is a solid surface on the feet, where as with wire, they are standing on stress points on the feet. Bumblefoot can be more common on wire, so make sure to keep the wire very clean. Make sure you use a barricade of some sort just beneath your wire floor so predators can not lurk in the night and grab toes that hang out. And always offer your quail a place to get off the wire to rest their feet.

Edit to add: You can always bed the wire down with some grass hay for some sort of bedding if you wish.

 

[the outdoorsman44]

Of course the birds will prefer the dirt over wire, being more natural to them. Dirt is a solid surface on the feet, where as with wire, they are standing on stress points on the feet. Bumblefoot can be more common on wire, so make sure to keep the wire very clean. Make sure you use a barricade of some sort just beneath your wire floor so predators can not lurk in the night and grab toes that hang out. And always offer your quail a place to get off the wire to rest their feet.

Edit to add: You can always bed the wire down with some grass hay for some sort of bedding if you wish.

thank you
and yes i was going to lay some bedding and have an area for dirt

 

[the outdoorsman44]

oh and the ants are a pain.
is it safe to use DE
i think i heard it was safe

 

[TwoCrows]

DE is quite safe to use. Don't over do it so the quail are breathing in too much dust, but you can dust around the walls, corners and a tiny handful in the dusting pans works well.

Yeah, the ants are a pain in the arse this year in the southwest, aren't they? I got em all! Black ants, tiny brown ants and fire ants.

 

[Caribear]

I've heard that there's a product called Orange TKO that is supposed to work miracles against ants. I think that orange oil would also work. I use orange oil and vinegar to get rid of wasps and yellowjackets, it works great. Plus it's safe for my animals.

 

[the outdoorsman44]

so i made the decision and i will stick with dirt and i found something that works miracles with ants and i can use it around birds/quail

 

[TwoCrows]

so i made the decision and i will stick with dirt and i found something that works miracles with ants and i can use it around birds/quail

Well then, you are going to have to SHARE this miracle so I too can rid this place of ants! LOL

 

[UndergroundQuailRoad]

Plant some mint around the coop or get a mint extract based spray to get rid of the ants.