my button quail laid her first egg and got very sick

[xrak]

Yesterday my button quail laid her first egg. She is 8 weeks old. However, the day before that – she got sick (and she’s still sick).

Her feathers became fluffy.. She stands all the time and hardly walks, never lie down.. She has also stopped eating and barely drinks.. She has had some watery poops, some being completely clear and colorless and some more greenish..

I usually feed my quails with chicken starter food and today I added some egg shells – but she refuses to eat. Also, not sure if this detail is important, but the day before she got sick, we gave her some mealworms. It was not the first time she ate them, but it was the firs time she ate so many of them. (about 10 worms and they were 0.5” long). The other quails (boys) ate them too but they are fine.

I don’t know what to do... Please help, I don't want her to die!

 

[nuthatched]

She might have an egg stuck, or she's constipated from the meal worms, did you provide grit? I'm not sure what to do with quail.

 

[little-beep]

If she's all fluffed up she may be a bit chilly...

Congrats on the EGG tho and I sure do hope she's going to be ok. I know how attached we can get to our wee babies -- I've been crying today over my "first born/hatched" baby- button-boy who's head is split open .. whaaah.. .. I pray she will be alright -- hopefully others here have some more useful input in regards to what's going on -- I still don't have an egg from my 3 mth old crazy wild female so I haven't learned anything in that regards thru experience. Maybe @Nabiki will know something, she seems to know stuff .. or @FloorCandy

 

[Nabiki]

I she pooping? My first thought is that she may be egg bound, but if she just laid, that may or may not be the case.

In the meantime, keep her warm, and you may want to isolate her. If you can keep her in a dim, warm, place, it will help her relax. If she is egg bound, I would recommend a warm (quail body temp or a couple of degrees warmer) epsom salt bath to help her pass the egg.

 

[xrak]

Yes, they live in different terrariums because the guys are very mean to her and she is afraid of them. Since I don't want her to feel lonely, I placed the tanks close so that they could see each other. Its been like that for a while and looks like it works fine for everyone.

Unlike boys, she is very tame with us and is never afraid of us. Children love to play with her, she runs after them like a cat ... (well, at least it was before the illness). Very beautiful creature!

Today I tried to play with food before her and she ate a bit... I put her beloved soft toy in her terrarium and turned on a heat lamp… She's always loved a sand bath, but these days she doesn't want to do anything... very weak.

 

[xrak]

I also wanted to ask you guys one more thing: In addition to wood shavings, I added garden lime, activated charcoals and sweet pdz in the bedding – in order to eliminate odors. The question is, are these safe for my quails if they eat some of it?

Google says it's not harmful, but instead it's even beneficial to bird’s health. But I want to double check just in case…

 

[Nabiki]

Is she pooping? If she is, does it look normal?

 

[xrak]

I waited half a day until she finally pooped. This poop is a little thicker than it was yesterday, but a little watery than usual. But I think she's getting a little better after I turn the heat lamp on...

 

[Nabiki]

I'm glad she seems to be getting better. She's not egg bound, at least.

 

[FloorCandy]

I’m not certain that garden lime is completely safe in a tank like that, with limited ventilation. I believe it’s is an irritant if inhaled or stood directly on for long times, so I’m wondering if she breathed some in and was feeling under the weather?