My Chicks all Died

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Quail make wonderful pets and my coturnix quail laid nice little eggs for me. I have had good luck with quail chicks in a covered aquarium with an ordinary clamp light set on top, a 40 watt bulb. Place the lamp at one end so there is good ventilation at the other side, and keep the water at the cool end. Wee hatchling chicks need to be at about 104°f (40°c), lowering the heat about 5° each week. This is easily done by raising the lamp a bit higher. They should be moving freely around the cage, not huddled. Marbles or pebbles in the water at first. Any gamebird starter will do, your feed store should be able to sell you a partial bag when you get your chicks. Bits of fresh grass for a treat, cut to short lengths. Wheatgrass will do if you have no garden grass. This is a link to a video so you can see my simple brooder setup. They don't need much space at first. Please try again and don't be discouraged.
 
theostofski said:
I have a very strange and interesting problem that may be hard for y'all country folk to understand. I live in Manhattan new york in a small apartment and I decided to raise quails as pets!?!? I have provided them with a reasonable 6ft by 2ft Brooder. their water supply is always accessible though they don't seem to drink it, To solve this I drop fed them water every hour. Their food supplies are made up of A few live Crickets, Dried mealworms, and Wagner's wild bird feed (The mealworms and seed are ground together) they seemed to be happy until one by one they all died over a 2 week period. their water supplies had a few vitamins to keep them in shape and they never showed signs of being too cold or too hot I can't seem to find a reason for there death...

(Forgive misspells and grammar issue I'm Scottish English is my second language)

(I will respond to as many responses as possible)
(I speak Scottish Gaelic and recently learned English I know English is spoken in Scotland)
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Typically I offer water. New chicks - I dip their beaks into the water briefly and they swallow a little of it. Then I let them alone. They will go and drink if they are thirsty. I do it to several birds and they teach the others. Small game birds need a high protein food. I use gamebird feed or Flock raiser for the higher protein. A heat source was explained well above. Little bodies can't regulate their heat. Heat on one side of a pen so they can move under it or away from it works for me. I use a big rubber tub with a heat lamp above it. A regular lightbulb works fine in a climate controlled area. I brace the lamp with sticks across the top to keep it from falling down. Never raised quail so I don't know much about them but have raised turkeys, guineas, chickens and exotic birds. Guineas have very small bodies when born. They are touch and go the first few days because they are tiny to start. Less handling is better.
 
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theostofski said:
I have a very strange and interesting problem that may be hard for y'all country folk to understand. I live in Manhattan new york in a small apartment and I decided to raise quails as pets!?!? I have provided them with a reasonable 6ft by 2ft Brooder. their water supply is always accessible though they don't seem to drink it, To solve this I drop fed them water every hour. Their food supplies are made up of A few live Crickets, Dried mealworms, and Wagner's wild bird feed (The mealworms and seed are ground together) they seemed to be happy until one by one they all died over a 2 week period. their water supplies had a few vitamins to keep them in shape and they never showed signs of being too cold or too hot I can't seem to find a reason for there death...

(Forgive misspells and grammar issue I'm Scottish English is my second language)

(I will respond to as many responses as possible)
(I speak Scottish Gaelic and recently learned English I know English is spoken in Scotland)
Click to expand...
Maybe I missed it somewhere; how old are your birds? If they are young, I can understand the issues of why the are dying, if they are mature, I can understand another issue why they are dying. Also, what kind of watering system are you using (that they are afraid of) not how you are getting them to drink?
 
I am not sure why some people tend to respond harshly when others make a mistake, and ask for help, but such is the world nowadays.
The red flag to me was giving them a drink. It's extremely easy to aspirate birds because their esophagus is on their tongue. Some people dip the beak of chicks in water but I don't risk them aspirating. I simply show them the water by dipping my finger in it.
I've never raised quail but they are harder than chickens. I've raised many baby chicks (chickens) and never lost one except to predation. I would recommend that you start with chickens. They make better pets by far and are easier.
2nd, temperature is extremely important. They need a SMALL space with warmth and the ability to get away from it if too hot. Babies aren't experienced enough to find the heat source if they have too much space. You can get a thermometer at Walmart for about $2.
Follow the instructions of the hatchery or numerous resources online for temperature and other care.
Never make up your own guidelines if you are a newbie, such as diet or space needs.
Hope this helps.
 
This is one of the most interesting posts I've seen in a long time! I've lived in the city in apartments (both in the U.S. and abroad) and now live in the country. Is there something I'm missing that makes quail an appealing apartment pet? Has anyone else out there done this? I have 130 laying hens, 5 peacocks, 6 cats, 6 roosters, 30 guinea fowl, a dog, 2 rescue horses and 2 rescue donkeys on 16 acres. When we lived in apartments and town homes, we had 2 cats and occasionally a hamster or fish. A lot of the health of an animal is based on them having the right environment and no matter how nice a brooder is for quail in an apartment, I'm not sure it would have been successful long term for the animal or the owner. Quail are ground foul, not really domestic pets, and even if they had lived, it might have been difficult to keep them alive long term. I know A LOT about raising all sorts of critters and can't see the appeal of having a "livestock type" animal in an apartment, but I might be missing something? Part of the fun of these types of animals is seeing them hunt and peck about, scratch at grass, call to each other across a yard, etc. I'm thinking a few budgies (parakeets) and a lot of research might lead you to a pet search that is more pleasant for both you and the pet? If you love birds, parakeets can be trained to sit on your finger and eat and you can even breed them if you have a suitable pair. A rabbit or two would love your hutch and you can train them to use a litter box so they can roam about your apartment and feed them salad. Long term prognosis for pets like that are much greater in an apartment.
 
mpdnd1 said:
Wild fowl chicks require a longer period of warmth in a confined space for 2 months as chicks. They also require a high protein chick feed for at least 4 months and can then be put on flock raiser. They are harder to raise than chicks. Added vitamin powder and probiotics are also a plus.
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Quail do not need to be confined with heat for 2 months. They're able to go out in mild weather at 5 weeks
 
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