help please! dying baby quail

[kbennett87]

I had 15 4 day old quail yesterday. we did have a temp drop yesterday which I blamed for the death of the first 3 but we got the temp up and over night 6 more died. all the remaining quail seem to be having trouble breathing and a couple are really wobbly. I am not sure what to do right now, I changed their bedding water and food this morning to hopefully get rid of any germs that might have found their way in there but I have a feeling that by lunchtime I will have no more live babies. any advice? this is breaking my heart!

 

[MotownMenace]

I had a weak baby quail that I nursed back to health using honey water. I mixed about 2 tablespoons of water with 1-2 drops of honey and let her drink it. I read about using honey water on chicken chicks so I gave it a shot because she was dying anyways, and it worked. She's now full grow and doing fine.

I won't claim to be an expert but it might be worth a shot. It sounds like the cold caused some issues.

 

[TwoCrows]

2 week old quail, could be cocci. What does the poop look like? What is the consistency of the poop? What type of bedding are you using?

 

[kbennett87]

poop is white and brown, not runny. I have been using terry cloth towels and had bought pine chips to switch to once they were 5 days old (today).

 

[kbennett87]

they also seem to be smothering each other. I have to go in there every 15 minutes and pull them off of each other. it is really warm so I am not sure why they are doing that.

 

[HeatherN]

im no expert on birds or chicks, but i do have a lot of experience with reptiles and small mammals. when a sudden and extreme temp drop occurs to an animal that is very sensitive (like babies), it can sometimes give them a respiratory infection. what reminds me of an RI is the trouble breathing and the huddling together. the honey water could give them the energy they need to fight of the infection, but other than that, usually you just keep them at a constant, warm temp and make sure theyre not exposed to super high humidity or dust of any sort.

again, i dont know if that all applies to birds, but it's worked with baby mice for me and sick snakes. good luck!

 

[kbennett87]

Thanks for all the great info! I am down to 5 chicks left and really cant stand to lose another. I have added a probiotic and electrolyte supplement to their water. does anyone know if that will help like the honey or should I do the honey instead?

 

[kbennett87]

ok so I did add some honey water in there too, just in case.

 

[kbennett87]

they are so sneaky! I will sit in there with them for like 10 minutes and they are fine, they walk around, eat and drink etc. but I leave the room for 15 minutes and when I come back 2 of them look near death by being smothered against the wall. it is so frustrating, I really cant spend the whole day in the closet with them.

 

[jobeis]

I wish I had advice but I am new to quail too. I hatched 7 out and on the 7th day, one died. I have no idea why. It was running around hopping the night before like the others.

I hope the remaining ones survive for you.