I think my quail was born blind... now what?

[coturnixquestions]

I've just started raising coturnix quail in the last six months and so far I really love them. I am raising hens for eggs and I had about 11 males that I raised and culled for meat. I intend to raise another batch of chicks in December but before I do I wanted to make sure there's not an issue with my flock. I have one male quail that appears to be completely blind. I noticed it right around the 6-7 week mark and they are roughly 9-10 weeks now. He was big enough and has never had any problem locating food and water even if it got moved, however, I went to check on them this morning and realized he was bleeding from his toes. I'm not sure if another bird attacked him or if he just hurt himself. I didn't want to cull him, but I'm beginning to wonder if thats best considering his quality of life. I've noticed recently that he has not motivation to dust bathe, he doesnt have any interest in females, and he spends the majority of his time in one place not moving. I feel that it might be kinder to let him go. Does anyone else have any experience with this? Sorry for the long post!

 

[Nabiki]

I would personally cull a blind quail unless you want to keep him as a pet. Are you breeding silver to silver by any chance? Is he an albino? Those often have eye problems.

 

[coturnixquestions]

I would personally cull a blind quail unless you want to keep him as a pet. Are you breeding silver to silver by any chance? Is he an albino? Those often have eye problems.

No, hes just a normal tuxedo quail. Im not sure what silver to silver means to be honest. I bought him and all the others from a local breeder. Im worried that inbreeding may have caused the problem. Perhaps it would be best to cull.

 

[Nabiki]

Silver to silver would mean breeding a silver male to a silver female. There are a couple colours that have a good chance of producing a lethal combination if bred together. Silvers are one, Italians are another.

I love the SSC (silver Schofield collection), for example, but I don't breed them anymore because too many albinos with serious health issues were being produced. I hate culling chicks.

 

[coturnixquestions]

Silver to silver would mean breeding a silver male to a silver female. There are a couple colours that have a good chance of producing a lethal combination if bred together. Silvers are one, Italians are another.

I love the SSC (silver Schofield collection), for example, but I don't breed them anymore because too many albinos with serious health issues were being produced. I hate culling chicks.

Oh, ok. I do have two albino quail, but they're both females. I think I am going to let him go to make sure I prevent any health issues in any potential offspring.