DIY Heating pad setup for brooder... Will it get hot enough and what kind do you use?

[Peristeria]

I am trying to not make my quail scared of the dark as I had for my latest brood , so I was thinking about getting this heating pad but some of the reviews say it doesn't get hot enough. Has anyone tried this heating pad? Any recommendations? What heating pad do yall use? Thanks!

 

[DobieLover]

I am trying to not make my quail scared of the dark as I had for my latest brood , so I was thinking about getting this heating pad but some of the reviews say it doesn't get hot enough. Has anyone tried this heating pad? Any recommendations? What heating pad do yall use? Thanks!

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Do you intend to use this as a heat source for brooding?
It has an auto-off feature that I don't think can be by-passed so that would rather be a deal breaker if your intention is for supplemental heat for chicks.
What do you mean, "scared of the dark"? Birds aren't scared of the dark. They may complain when suddenly plunged into darkness when a light is turned off instead of the light gradually fading with a natural dusk. But they aren't afraid.

 

[Peristeria]

Do you intend to use this as a heat source for brooding?
It has an auto-off feature that I don't think can be by-passed so that would rather be a deal breaker if your intention is for supplemental heat for chicks.
What do you mean, "scared of the dark"? Birds aren't scared of the dark. They may complain when suddenly plunged into darkness when a light is turned off instead of the light gradually fading with a natural dusk. But they aren't afraid.

Thankfully, the internet has gifted me with an instructable on how to get rid of the auto turn off with a soldering iron so hopefully that will work. The quail sat outside at night and yelled and yelled and yelled their first time outside at night and it was so sad, haha. I too thought they would be calmer since it faded with a natural dusk but they still were flipping out when they saw me (during the day they wouldn't but at night it was insane). I do intend to use it to brood the chicks, but if it doesn't work out I will just use a heat lamp like before.

Edit: oops I just realized the title was kinda misleading sorry about that!

 

[Quail 66]

Do you intend to use this as a heat source for brooding?
It has an auto-off feature that I don't think can be by-passed so that would rather be a deal breaker if your intention is for supplemental heat for chicks.
What do you mean, "scared of the dark"? Birds aren't scared of the dark. They may complain when suddenly plunged into darkness when a light is turned off instead of the light gradually fading with a natural dusk. But they aren't afraid.

I too have a quail who is afraid of the dark. I don't know why. It was a gift.

 

[Peristeria]

I too have a quail who is afraid of the dark. I don't know why. It was a gift.

The heating pad has worked beautifully! They aren't scared once they're under the heating pad. If you have heat lamp only, turn their light off once a day for 10 min or so and they will be less scared I have heard. I feel too mean though because they chirp and chirp and chirp and chirp! Good luck with your quail!

 

[Quail 66]

The heating pad has worked beautifully! They aren't scared once they're under the heating pad. If you have heat lamp only, turn their light off once a day for 10 min or so and they will be less scared I have heard. I feel too mean though because they chirp and chirp and chirp and chirp! Good luck with your quail!

The ones I raised just with the lamp are fine. I don't know how the frightened one was raised. I exchange birds with a friend who also exchange with others. I leave the curtains a bit open at night and gradually he is getting used to the dark ( my cage is beside the window so I can always keep an eye on them). what concerns me now is how to keep them warm because winter is coming but I don't feel safe with solutions that involve electric power.

 

[Peristeria]

The ones I raised just with the lamp are fine. I don't know how the frightened one was raised. I exchange birds with a friend who also exchange with others. I leave the curtains a bit open at night and gradually he is getting used to the dark ( my cage is beside the window so I can always keep an eye on them). what concerns me now is how to keep them warm because winter is coming but I don't feel safe with solutions that involve electric power.

Oh, haha! I thought you said yours were scared of the dark! I don't know if mine were just dumb or if they just imprinted on me but they wanted out of their house once it was dark. How cold does it get where you are? I am planning on building a ground pen with a house inside the hill (if it doesn't flood) so they can keep warm. It doesn't get too cold here though, just to keep the ladies happy!

 

[Quail 66]

Oh, haha! I thought you said yours were scared of the dark! I don't know if mine were just dumb or if they just imprinted on me but they wanted out of their house once it was dark. How cold does it get where you are? I am planning on building a ground pen with a house inside the hill (if it doesn't flood) so they can keep warm. It doesn't get too cold here though, just to keep the ladies happy!

The temperature now is around 5 to 15 degrees Celsius (49F now at 19:30) but it will drop a lot from December till February. Rarely below zero, but we usually have a lot of humidity. I will cover the cage with windproof tarp and I am seriously thinking of putting a hot water bottle at night if it is very cold. I want them happy too . I was putting ice packs in the cage when it was to hot. Hahaha how silly is that!
Maybe there are scary wind drafts where you keep your birds now, or they feel to exposed. Maybe animals disturb them at night? Maybe they need a box to find shelter.

 

[Peristeria]

The temperature now is around 5 to 15 degrees Celsius (49F now at 19:30) but it will drop a lot from December till February. Rarely below zero, but we usually have a lot of humidity. I will cover the cage with windproof tarp and I am seriously thinking of putting a hot water bottle at night if it is very cold. I want them happy too . I was putting ice packs in the cage when it was to hot. Hahaha how silly is that!
Maybe there are scary wind drafts where you keep your birds now, or they feel to exposed. Maybe animals disturb them at night? Maybe they need a box to find shelter.

It was their first 2 weeks outside and they were flipping out. I made their house draft-proof for the most part and even if there is wind they have a house to go inside. I will be moving them onto the ground when it gets cold here but it never snows so they'll be ok. I have heard that they love warm water when it is cold but thankfully it will never get cold enough where they will want that here. When it gets hot it only gets up to about 90F at the max so they just lay out in the sun and take it all in . I do offer a water pool to stand in and cool off.
Now for the scary animals... we have a red fox that screamed all around our house for 2 nights and it sounded like someone screaming! We googled what animal it was and ta-da! red fox! We haven't heard him since but we do have raccoons/owls occasionally. The owls are huuuge and just sit and watch the quail.

 

[Quail 66]

It was their first 2 weeks outside and they were flipping out. I made their house draft-proof for the most part and even if there is wind they have a house to go inside. I will be moving them onto the ground when it gets cold here but it never snows so they'll be ok. I have heard that they love warm water when it is cold but thankfully it will never get cold enough where they will want that here. When it gets hot it only gets up to about 90F at the max so they just lay out in the sun and take it all in . I do offer a water pool to stand in and cool off.
Now for the scary animals... we have a red fox that screamed all around our house for 2 nights and it sounded like someone screaming! We googled what animal it was and ta-da! red fox! We haven't heard him since but we do have raccoons/owls occasionally. The owls are huuuge and just sit and watch the quail.

haha. They are just measuring the distance. No scary animals here. Only scary constructions in progress all day long.
My birds didn't seem to enjoy or care much for water baths with ice cubes. And it can get really hot here ( even 38C ).