Quail chick sudden death, cause unknown

[maadroj]

We hatched 14 California quail chicks about 2 weeks ago. They all seemed healthy, no signs of weakness or disease.

I found one dead this morning, just outside of the heat plate and on top of the milder heating pad. It seems to have been lying down, legs outstretched and wings at its sides, eyes closed. Food and water available, no clue what happened. The brooder is in our bedroom. We've been woken by their night frights before, but nothing last night.

Yesterday we fed them store-bought live mealworms, crushed dried mealworms, crushed gamebird starter mixed with ground nuts, seeds, and yeast, and a few bits of cilantro, watercress, and kale.

The others seem normal; if anything, maybe a little more agitated than usual, but probably my imagination?

What might have happened? I'm trying to keep a close eye on the rest. Are there any kinds of signs we should look for?

 

[Ebony Rose]

Do they have grit? Do any of them have pasty (poopy) butt? Do they have a cool zone in their brooder so they can totally get out of added heat? Is the room totally darkened at night? Since their brooder is in your bedroom, it begs the question, does someone snore and is perhaps startling the birds at night? Coccidiosis is RARE for quail, but still possible; are their poops normal? Parsley and Cilantro are closely related, they both belong to the Apiaceae family. Parsley is toxic to quail. I'm guessing here, but I'm thinking that cilantro is toxic to them as well.

 

[maadroj]

Do they have grit? Do any of them have pasty (poopy) butt? Do they have a cool zone in their brooder so they can totally get out of added heat? Is the room totally darkened at night? Since their brooder is in your bedroom, it begs the question, does someone snore and is perhaps startling the birds at night? Coccidiosis is RARE for quail, but still possible; are their poops normal? Parsley and Cilantro are closely related, they both belong to the Apiaceae family. Parsley is toxic to quail. I'm guessing here, but I'm thinking that cilantro is toxic to them as well.

OMG, I hope cilantro isn't toxic to them!!! just gave them more today! Now I'm terrified. They all seem fine right now. How quickly would they react if it's toxic? It's been a few hours since the cilantro, and they've just had a cricket buffet.

 

[maadroj]

No pasty butt. Someone does have watery poop (it looks norms but includes water). We give them a tray of dirt from the backyard for dust bathing and thought that would provide grit. Should we give additional grit?

I'm so terrified I've poisoned them.

 

[el dorado quail]

Whats the temp in brooder and the size of it? 2 heat sources could be potentially overheating them

 

[maadroj]

Whats the temp in brooder and the size of it? 2 heat sources could be potentially overheating them

There's a heat pad (that they can sit on top of), a heat plate (that they can sit under, and it's at an angle do they can choose the intensity they prefer), and there's an unheated section with the water and most of the food (some food in the pad, and if course they scatter feed everywhere).

 

[el dorado quail]

There's a heat pad (that they can sit on top of), a heat plate (that they can sit under, and it's at an angle do they can choose the intensity they prefer), and there's an unheated section with the water and most of the food (some food in the pad, and if course they scatter feed everywhere).

Yah but they might not be smart enough to move if it's too hot. A temp reading would help rule that out.
@007Sean might be able to help with more diagnostic discussion

 

[maadroj]

Yah but they might not be smart enough to move if it's too hot. A temp reading would help rule that out.
@007Sean might be able to help with more diagnostic discussion

The one that died was lying on the head pad, which is very mild, not under the heating plate. I'll try checking with a thermometer tomorrow morning.

 

[007Sean]

Sometimes pasty butt doesn't present it's self the way we normally see it, especially in Valley and Gamble quail.
It appears more as a blockage, no visible sign of it on the exterior of the quails body.
Too much heat can cause it, and Valleys and Gambles seem to be more susceptible than other quail.

Too much roughage could be causing the problem as well...when feeding young Valley, Gamble and Mountain quail, it is better to feed a complete and balanced gamebird ration feed, of at least 24% protein, only! Personally, I don't feed any 'greens' to my young birds.

In the wild, the young chicks diet consists of mainly insects, as they mature, they will switch to a more vegetarian diet...grasses, weeds, and the seeds of those grasses and weeds.

I would remove one of the heat sources and feed only a gamebird ration feed. The live mealworms would be ok to feed but in limited quantity. HTH

 

[maadroj]

If pasty butt presents itself differently in valley quail, what do I look for and how do I address it? I've added sand as grit for now.