Feather loss in Quail. Advice please!

[Soph_quail]

Hi so I’ve had my quail for quite a few months now and all of them are doing well. However I noticed recently one of my females has feather loss on her lower back. I originally put this down to mating but now I’m not sure as she doesn’t seem to be being overly bred. In general her feathers look quite dirty and dry and I’ve noticed on closer inspection her skin looks very dry. I thought it may be mites so I did a thorough check of her and came up empty. Is this normal? Should I be worried? I give them dust every single day if they want it but she doesn’t seem to use it very often although everybody else does. Is there something else I should be doing? Does anybody know what the likely cause is? I’ve attached a photo and as you can see she looks very messy. Any advice would be great!

 

[rag1201]

Have you tried mixing apple cider vinegar with their water? I've read this could help in improving feather quality. Let's not go by my word though, new to this myself. Let the experts jump in.

 

[le_bwah]

My guess is mites or another quail harassing her. If mites, you usually only see the bugs themselves when they come out to feed after dark.

Any reason you can't leave the dust bath in 24/7? It really is a necessity to their skin and feather health.

 

[Justso]

It looks like either her, or another is picking the feathers. Not sure in quail, but is their food a high enough % protein? It could be dietary but also be behavioral.
If it were me I'd cover up with bluKote or a little saddle and see if it improves.

 

[Soph_quail]

My guess is mites or another quail harassing her. If mites, you usually only see the bugs themselves when they come out to feed after dark.

Any reason you can't leave the dust bath in 24/7? It really is a necessity to their skin and feather health.

Okay thank you. Most days I put it in first thing in the morning and take it out last thing at night for cleaning/ so it doesn’t get wet So they have it about 15 hours a day if they want it.

 

[Soph_quail]

Have you tried mixing apple cider vinegar with their water? I've read this could help in improving feather quality. Let's not go by my word though, new to this myself. Let the experts jump in.

No I haven’t but I will now! Can’t hurt! Thank you.

 

[Soph_quail]

It looks like either her, or another is picking the feathers. Not sure in quail, but is their food a high enough % protein? It could be dietary but also be behavioral.
If it were me I'd cover up with bluKote or a little saddle and see if it improves.

Yes I’ve made sure there diet is suitable. And okay thanks for the advice!

 

[Justso]

No I haven’t but I will now! Can’t hurt! Thank you.

Along with ACV water, make sure your birds have a source of plain clean water as well.

 

[Fenrisulfr]

From my experience, this is mating. The places are typical (neck and back).

Probably she is the roo's favorite.