Probably a dumb question, but...

[Lori J]

Ulcerative Enteritis is the only thing that quail can transmit to chickens. It is deadly but, it'd kill the quail pretty fast as well.

Guess mine are doomed! They have been around one another a long time.

 

[MadamContrary]

Guess mine are doomed! They have been around one another a long time.

No if they were carriers everyone would be dead by now. I keep my quail and chickens right next to each other as well but, it was after a 30 day quarantine.

 

[Lori J]

You have a broody thats been sitting for 30 days you need to break the poor girl and let her go eat and build her weight back up. You put another batch under her she will wind up dead.

Yeah, tried that last year. Got lots of advice, didn’t go well. She went right back after. So that’s all I want to talk about that.

 

[Lori J]

Turkey maybe, quail not with a full sized chicken, they smother easily. Quail and turkey have similar nutritional needs as quail, a starter with 30% protein. Then you have biosecurity issues of adding new birds without quarantine. I'd just look for some fertile eggs and let her try again if she's that stubborn about sitting. Or just order chicks instead of you don't want to let her sit that long. TSC has a 10 chick minimum, and this time of year there's usually lots available via craigslist.

Made posts elsewhere. No replies. Probably just a timing issue..... but I am confused. You are suggesting that I purchase chicks and yet you are also saying you recommend a 30 day quarantine... they would definitely not be chicks anymore after that and my poor hen would still be sitting.

 

[MadamContrary]

Yeah, tried that last year. Got lots of advice, didn’t go well. She went right back after. So that’s all I want to talk about that.

I'm with you on that one, some birds just want to sit. If you have her food and water right next to her she should be fine.

 

[Lori J]

I'm with you on that one, some birds just want to sit. If you have her food and water right next to her she should be fine.

I gave her vitamins in her water and eggs this morning. Sometimes she won’t eat, but this morning she did. I was hoping the eggs would tempt her.

 

[MadamContrary]

Made posts elsewhere. No replies. Probably just a timing issue..... but I am confused. You are suggesting that I purchase chicks and yet you are also saying you recommend a 30 day quarantine... they would definitely not be chicks anymore after that and my poor hen would still be sitting.

No really just helping you weigh the pros and cons of the situation. Ultimately it's your decision on what's best for her, there's going to be some level risk regardless. Are you risking contamination to break her broodiness with chicks of some kind, are you risking her rejecting quail or accidentally injuring/suffocating them or the nutritional issues, or do you risk leaving her to sit forever. It's up to you.

 

[shrimpsilkies]

An Orpington is a big chicken and could swallow a quail chick whole! Turkeys would be a safer bet, but they also need high protein starter. Best bet is to try to break the broody if you can...

 

[NatJ]

I would not try quail under a hen that big, and I would probably not try the turkeys either.

Since you do not want to try breaking her broodiness, I suggest you order order some chicks for her.

I just checked two hatcheries (McMurray and Ideal), and they both have chicks available to ship next Monday. Some other hatcheries probably have chicks available as well.

So you could have baby chickens within a week from now, and let her raise them.

For the future, since you prefer to give this hen chicks instead of trying to break her broodiness, you might want to place a chick order as soon as you know she is broody. You could order chicks from a hatchery, or ask the local store to order some for you, and just schedule them to arrive when your hen has been setting for about 3 weeks.

 

[FloorCandy]

Made posts elsewhere. No replies. Probably just a timing issue..... but I am confused. You are suggesting that I purchase chicks and yet you are also saying you recommend a 30 day quarantine... they would definitely not be chicks anymore after that and my poor hen would still be sitting.

You could order fertile eggs for her to hatch. Maybe get something that has good resale value where you live. Then she can hatch and care for chicks and you could make a few bux selling extras. The risk of illness transmitted from eggs is much lower than from chicks or adults from what I understand.