Quail chick lameness

[Kelzoi]

Hello everyone,
I have a newly hatched Georgia Giant quail chick I need some help with.
We got a batch of eggs from an online dealer. Only 4 of the 13 were fertile (the company did reimburse us). One of the four died during incubation (blood ring). And the other 3 were still alive. One hatched about 12 hours ago. He did need a little help-he was able to zip all the way around, but need help popping the lid off, the rest he did himself. Anyways, we are 12 hours post-hatch and he has good energy and is drying off, but his feet are curled up so he is unable to stand. I have included some pictures the best I can. He is still being kept in the incubator, I just took him out real quick for the picture. What do I do? He is a pet, not for food or hunting, so I want to try to help him.
Thank you!

 

[nchls school]

Quail chicks are so small; it is difficult to help them. Make sure food and water are near. Help it learn to eat by taking a finger and tap where the food is. Dip his beak in water to teach him how to drink. Do not bother with food and drink until tomorrow or until the chick starts pecking at its surroundings. It is very possible the chick will learn to walk on its curled toes as it gets stronger. Possibly the toes can be splinted to make them straight. Good luck.

 

[CayugaJana]

Hello everyone,
I have a newly hatched Georgia Giant quail chick I need some help with.
We got a batch of eggs from an online dealer. Only 4 of the 13 were fertile (the company did reimburse us). One of the four died during incubation (blood ring). And the other 3 were still alive. One hatched about 12 hours ago. He did need a little help-he was able to zip all the way around, but need help popping the lid off, the rest he did himself. Anyways, we are 12 hours post-hatch and he has good energy and is drying off, but his feet are curled up so he is unable to stand. I have included some pictures the best I can. He is still being kept in the incubator, I just took him out real quick for the picture. What do I do? He is a pet, not for food or hunting, so I want to try to help him.
Thank you!

I have several like that right now. Try getting a tall cup. Smoosh a paper towel all the way into the bottom where it makes I small cushiony area for it. Then put the cup back into the brooder. It forces the quail to stay upright and it will use its legs. The more it uses its legs the better your chances are. But you will probably have to feed it out of a dropper since it can’t go anywhere. If the feet are crinkled and don’t flatten out, I can help with that later. I’ll see if I can get a picture for you tonight.

 

[Kelzoi]

Thanks you guys! I went home for lunch and tried to splint the feet open, but then he just flops around and can't stand. I'll try the cup thing! Should I leave the splints on to open the feet while he is in the cup?

 

[CayugaJana]

Thanks you guys! I went home for lunch and tried to splint the feet open, but then he just flops around and can't stand. I'll try the cup thing! Should I leave the splints on to open the feet while he is in the cup?

Try without the splints first and see how he does.

 

[CayugaJana]

Here is an example.....

For the feet, I tried cutting a small piece of plastic out of a solo cup about the size of his foot spread out. Then I placed it on the bottom of the foot and wrapped with painters tape. Each foot separately. Bandaids didn’t work for me.

 

[Tyrovive]

Hello everyone,
I have a newly hatched Georgia Giant quail chick I need some help with.
We got a batch of eggs from an online dealer. Only 4 of the 13 were fertile (the company did reimburse us). One of the four died during incubation (blood ring). And the other 3 were still alive. One hatched about 12 hours ago. He did need a little help-he was able to zip all the way around, but need help popping the lid off, the rest he did himself. Anyways, we are 12 hours post-hatch and he has good energy and is drying off, but his feet are curled up so he is unable to stand. I have included some pictures the best I can. He is still being kept in the incubator, I just took him out real quick for the picture. What do I do? He is a pet, not for food or hunting, so I want to try to help him.
Thank you!

I hope your quail has improved and is doing well. I found this advice which may help you and others.
https://guineas.com/articles/splay

 

[Kelzoi]

Thanks everyone!
He is doing a bit better. His feet are open like normal now! He still a bit insteady and mostly bounces around for locomotion. He is pecking the ground and I've been offering him water from a syringe (along with a shallow dish in his brooder). I just had the second egg hatch and that one is way more coordinated than the gimpy one lol