Getting quails to eat fruits and veggies + lonely quail

[Q U A I L S]

Hello!! I'm new to this community! All of the people here are extremely nice and helpful and Im very happy to be here! I have a few questions about my quails though. Firstly, I have 3 quails that are about 2 years that only eat their seeds and grains. I tried to give them fresh fruit and veggies like cucumbers and bananas but they won't touch it. They are pretty healthy but I'm worried because quails need at-least some veggies. Is there anything I can do? I also have another problem. I have a DIY aviary and used to have all my quails there (2 female one male.) They got along but the male started pecking at 1 female, I know this is normal but the male quail was being very aggressive to this 1 quail and pecked her head to the point where there was quite a bit of blood. The quail got pretty weak and her feathers were starting to fall too so I put a rabbit hutch in the aviary and placed her in there. She's been there for a few months now and all her feathers have come back and she's looking pretty healthy. I have a sandbox in there with some hay to let her play with but I'm worried that she's lonely. Getting another quail is not an option for me, sadly, so is there anything I can do to make her feel happier?

 

[Quailobsessed]

Welcome to BYC!

Most people (including myself) feed their quails mostly gamebird pellets/crumble. Do you feed them gamebird food, or just other grains and seeds? Seeds are high in fat and fruit is high in sugar, so they should be reserved as treats and make up no more than 10% of their diet. Some vegetables would be great. Perhaps try lots of different textures and sizes for them. You could also try mixing them with food they do like, gradually doing more vegetables and less treats (this is what I've done to convert my parrots to a mostly vegetable diet). To get more protein in their diet, perhaps try giving them some mashed, boiled eggs (most quails love it).

For your lonely quail, is there any chance you could try re-introducing her with the others? I generally prefer pairs and have had great success with them, but it might be worth trying to re-introduce her because quails are social creatures and don't do well on their own.

I hope this is helpful. Feel free to ask more questions if you like

 

[Q U A I L S]

Welcome to BYC!

Most people (including myself) feed their quails mostly gamebird pellets/crumble. Do you feed them gamebird food, or just other grains and seeds? Seeds are high in fat and fruit is high in sugar, so they should be reserved as treats and make up no more than 10% of their diet. Some vegetables would be great. Perhaps try lots of different textures and sizes for them. You could also try mixing them with food they do like, gradually doing more vegetables and less treats (this is what I've done to convert my parrots to a mostly vegetable diet). To get more protein in their diet, perhaps try giving them some mashed, boiled eggs (most quails love it).

For your lonely quail, is there any chance you could try re-introducing her with the others? I generally prefer pairs and have had great success with them, but it might be worth trying to re-introduce her because quails are social creatures and don't do well on their own.

I hope this is helpful. Feel free to ask more questions if you like

Thank you so much! I give them a mix of grains and seeds with gamebird feed. I will definitely try lot's of different vegetables and try mixing it with their favourite foods. I will also try giving them some boiled eggs. I have tried to introduce my lonely quail to the others but the male quail was super aggressive again and made her head bleed. I have tried putting the other female with the my lonely one and they got along well. But the problem was that the male mated with the other female and is very attached to her. Every-time he can't see her he crows at the top of his lungs. When she's gone to eat some food and he's playing in the sand tub he will run to her just so he can see where she is, so he is very attached to her. I live in a suburban area too so even if I can deal with the constant crowing my neighbours can't.
Thanks for the help though I really appreciate it!!!

 

[Peristeria]

Hmm... I visited this thread because I have the same problem. My ladies will only eat boiled eggs off of their plate, and only that way. Boiled eggs on the ground, nope! Veggies on the plate, nope! I recommend getting a ratio of 1:~5 male:female so the male won't overmate one.

My quail eat mainly their crumble and their own eggs when they're in laying season. I occasionally try to get them to eat celery (small pieces) and veggies but they only want to seem to eat dandelion leaves and boiled eggs.
Edit: I boil their eggs they don't just eat them, haha.

I live in a suburban area and I was worried I would bother the neighbors because my male crows occasionally, but he seems to blend in with the songbirds and the non-stop coopers hawks (very very noisy aargh!), so I worry no more! I would ask your neighbors if he bothers them. My neighbors didn't even know I owned quail until one crowed while we were taking and I mentioned them.

Last but certainly not the least, !!!

 

[Q U A I L S]

Hmm... I visited this thread because I have the same problem. My ladies will only eat boiled eggs off of their plate, and only that way. Boiled eggs on the ground, nope! Veggies on the plate, nope! I recommend getting a ratio of 1:~5 male:female so the male won't overmate one.

My quail eat mainly their crumble and their own eggs when they're in laying season. I occasionally try to get them to eat celery (small pieces) and veggies but they only want to seem to eat dandelion leaves and boiled eggs.
Edit: I boil their eggs they don't just eat them, haha.

I live in a suburban area and I was worried I would bother the neighbors because my male crows occasionally, but he seems to blend in with the songbirds and the non-stop coopers hawks (very very noisy aargh!), so I worry no more! I would ask your neighbors if he bothers them. My neighbors didn't even know I owned quail until one crowed while we were taking and I mentioned them.

Last but certainly not the least, !!!

My neighbourhood is quite quiet apart from the occasional chirping of sparrows. My male quail has a very loud crow too so I'm pretty sure my neighbours would notice! Thank you for replying though!!

 

[NatJ]

I put a rabbit hutch in the aviary and placed her in there.... I'm worried that she's lonely.

Maybe you can divide the aviary with a piece of hardware cloth, or make a cage that sits on the ground in the aviary, so they can see and interact through the wire mesh. That way whichever quail is alone (female or male) might be less lonely.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

According to The Spruce, quail are graniverous, meaning they eat primarily seeds and grains. They are not omnivores so don't really need fruit or veggies and would not eat such things in the wild. Nor would they have access to, nor eat, boiled eggs.

 

[Q U A I L S]

Maybe you can divide the aviary with a piece of hardware cloth, or make a cage that sits on the ground in the aviary, so they can see and interact through the wire mesh. That way whichever quail is alone (female or male) might be less lonely.

Thank you!! I will definitely try that out!

 

[Q U A I L S]

According to The Spruce, quail are graniverous, meaning they eat primarily seeds and grains. They are not omnivores so don't really need fruit or veggies and would not eat such things in the wild. Nor would they have access to, nor eat, boiled eggs.

Thank you, I feel reassured! But I still would like to add some variety to their diet. Based on what Quailobsessed and Peristeria said, it seems that quails enjoy boiled eggs and it also provides more protein to their diet, so I will probably try giving them some. Thanks again though!

 

[Ebony Rose]

I regularly offer green cabbage, lettuce (that has seen better days) & papaya (that grows voluntarily on my property so it's totally free) as treats for my flock. Between the 37 birds, they can put a whole medium sized papaya away in 2 days flat! Toss a bit of lettuce into the mix and they're in heaven