help... new quail owner, one dead, one sick.

[sj416]

I just got 3 quails... 2 female, one male. Was told they were 4 weeks, Japanese. Came home today to one of my female dead and the other sick... walking slow, stumbling, having Trouble getting up. I just Cleaned their cage last night and had to have my son distract them bc they wouldn't stop running up to me while doing so. They finally just started running up to me instead of away, ha. But point is they were more than fine last night. My male is acting fine. They have been eating powdered chicken feed 20 protein I think and lettuce just was introduced over the weekend. I don't think they are getting much water, so that's a concern. But not sure what to do. The only thing I can think of is ACV and water combo in a dropper to try and get them to drink and hope the acv helps. I change their water dish 3x a day, and showed them wear it was. Any ideas. Should i separate them? I just pulled the female out but ended up putting her back bc the whole time they were calling for each other. She actually perked up when seperated and couldn't see him while she called out to him. Also Wondering how much I should feed them. Thank you! Anything at all, tips etc even not relevant to the sickness would be great. I plan on getting 3 more, was going to get 2, female so I can have a 1/4 breeding ratio that I read was best.

 

[dc3085]

I just got 3 quails... 2 female, one male. Was told they were 4 weeks, Japanese. Came home today to one of my female dead and the other sick... walking slow, stumbling, having Trouble getting up. I just Cleaned their cage last night and had to have my son distract them bc they wouldn't stop running up to me while doing so. They finally just started running up to me instead of away, ha. But point is they were more than fine last night. My male is acting fine. They have been eating powdered chicken feed 20 protein I think and lettuce just was introduced over the weekend. I don't think they are getting much water, so that's a concern. But not sure what to do. The only thing I can think of is ACV and water combo in a dropper to try and get them to drink and hope the acv helps. I change their water dish 3x a day, and showed them wear it was. Any ideas. Should i separate them? I just pulled the female out but ended up putting her back bc the whole time they were calling for each other. She actually perked up when seperated and couldn't see him while she called out to him. Also Wondering how much I should feed them. Thank you! Anything at all, tips etc even not relevant to the sickness would be great. I plan on getting 3 more, was going to get 2, female so I can have a 1/4 breeding ratio that I read was best.

If you pick one up and set it back down does it stagger and fall over or lose it's balance? When they walk do they walk in a straight line?

How little is water is not very much? Lack of water can cause nerve damage which has similar symptoms to what you are describing.

Is it possible that either of them got scared and hit their heads on ceiling? How tall is the cage they are in?

I would skip the ACV in the water and use vita-sol or sav-a-chick. They are vitamin supplements to add to the water, you can usually find one or the other at most pet stores.

ETA: feed them as much as they'll eat, you can't overdo it, just feed them freely. You should be feeding them high protein game bird food with 24-30% protein. Chicken feed is too high in calcium and too low in protein.

 

[sj416]

If you pick one up and set it back down does it stagger and fall over or lose it's balance? When they walk do they walk in a straight line?

How little is water is not very much? Lack of water can cause nerve damage which has similar symptoms to what you are describing. 

Is it possible that either of them got scared and hit their heads on ceiling? How tall is the cage they are in?

I would skip the ACV in the water and use vita-sol or sav-a-chick. They are vitamin supplements to add to the water, you can usually find one or the other at most pet stores. 

Yes... she is losing her balance and staggers. If she falls over she can not get back up on her own, I have to lift her up, or she'll continue to struggle. I'm not sure how much water they're actually drinking unfortunately. But i never see them drink... except once. So I'm worried they're not really getting any water. Any ideas on how to get them to drink? Do they like something better than just a water dish. The cage is short, but they have never tried flying in it. So i dont believe they hit their head. Are taller cages better? I'll try to upload a picture. It's my old rabbit hutch until my rabbit outgrew it. No acv at all? I've read in several posts it's great to put a small amount in their water all the time. Thank you so much!

 

[sj416]

I'm not sure you can tell the size just by the picture, it's bigger than most rabbit hutches. As we made it out of an entertainment hutch.

 

[dc3085]

Yes... she is losing her balance and staggers. If she falls over she can not get back up on her own, I have to lift her up, or she'll continue to struggle. I'm not sure how much water they're actually drinking unfortunately. But i never see them drink... except once. So I'm worried they're not really getting any water. Any ideas on how to get them to drink? Do they like something better than just a water dish. The cage is short, but they have never tried flying in it. So i dont believe they hit their head. Are taller cages better? I'll try to upload a picture. It's my old rabbit hutch until my rabbit outgrew it. No acv at all? I've read in several posts it's great to put a small amount in their water all the time. Thank you so much!

When it comes to ceiling height you want to stay below 16" its even better to stay below 12". Most rabbit hutches are perfectly tall enough for them to bang their heads.

Separate the birds that aren't feeling well if possible. Keep them warm and feed them whatever you can get them to eat. Without handling them you can never be sure, but most often this type of behavior is the result of either nerve damage from not drinking, or striking their heads on the ceiling. If they had water in the cage they found it and drank, unless the water was getting very hot. If you feed them anything besides their crumble you will need to provide grit for them as well.

Lots of people swear by ACV, but there isn't much concrete science to back up it's supposed health benefits.

http://blog.chickenwaterer.com/2012/12/dont-use-apple-cider-vinegar-acv-in.html

Give them a couple days to see if their condition improves, it's possible they will. If they don't seem to be getting better your best option will probably be to cull them. Unfortunately that is the most common outcome in these situations.