Hello all! I am new here, I have had chickens for ages with no problems now I just hatched out quail eggs, they are 4 days old and keep dropping dead!
So, I purchased 18 eggs on kijiji. Post service played hockey with them, three eggs were cracked/chipped and another 4 were non viable on day 5 candlings. I ended up with 7 that hatched. I figured it was my el cheapo incubators fault, humidity was wonky during lockdown, going between 65 and 90. About 24-36 hours they were dry and fluffy so I transferred them to pre heated brooder. Its a cardboard box, as I thought my chicken brooder was just too big for the tiny little things. They are in my bathroom, heated to 27. I brood chickens in the bathroom too- its cat free and I can keep the ambiant temp up. Everything in the brooder was sanitized and clean with hot water and soap, well rinsed, dried and then sprayed with hydrogen peroxide and air dried before use. Bedding is paper shop towels, I change it twice a day. Feed is turkey starter (all I could get in my little town) I put it in the blender so its almost dust. I put 1/2 tsp ACV in 500ml water, change the quail waterer twice a day. Everything is clean. I observe chicks eating, drinking, popping. Running around, seem normal and happy. They are not piling up or avoiding the heat. Their brooder is off the ground on a styrofoam pad. I use a small animal heat pad AND a hover plate brooder on the lowest level, it is on an angle so they can have temp differences. They are 4 days old today. Unlike my chickens they seem to sleep lying on their sides. Which i think is odd, but I read is normal for quail? I also see them standing towards the front during the day and stretching up to touch the heat plate instead of moving to the back where they can not have to reach up? First morning, I woke up there was one dead. I did not think much of it, that chick I thought was a little gimpy. Yesterday 2 more, one had trapped itself under the paper towel. I fixed that. Couldn't explain the other one. This morning another two dead! NO IDEA WHY... no mucky bums, they appear to be eating, drinking, pooping and growing. I have NEVER lost a chicken chick ever! How can I mess up and loose 4 quail in as many days? What am I doing wrong? Is the bottom heat pad and the overhead brooder heat plate too much heat? HELP please I really don't want to loose any more and need to sort out what I am doing wrong before I order more eggs. From a different seller in case there is genetic trouble? I did ask for all jumbo pharaoh, ended up with two yellow chicks with stripped backs. Seller said "that sometimes happens they grow as big as the jumbos". Ironically, those two which I slated for cull have actually survived. But I am really worried as I thought after the first three days losses would stop and here on the morning of day 4 my 7 chicks are down the three. Its heartbreaking, please tell me what I am doing wrong!
So, I purchased 18 eggs on kijiji. Post service played hockey with them, three eggs were cracked/chipped and another 4 were non viable on day 5 candlings. I ended up with 7 that hatched. I figured it was my el cheapo incubators fault, humidity was wonky during lockdown, going between 65 and 90. About 24-36 hours they were dry and fluffy so I transferred them to pre heated brooder. Its a cardboard box, as I thought my chicken brooder was just too big for the tiny little things. They are in my bathroom, heated to 27. I brood chickens in the bathroom too- its cat free and I can keep the ambiant temp up. Everything in the brooder was sanitized and clean with hot water and soap, well rinsed, dried and then sprayed with hydrogen peroxide and air dried before use. Bedding is paper shop towels, I change it twice a day. Feed is turkey starter (all I could get in my little town) I put it in the blender so its almost dust. I put 1/2 tsp ACV in 500ml water, change the quail waterer twice a day. Everything is clean. I observe chicks eating, drinking, popping. Running around, seem normal and happy. They are not piling up or avoiding the heat. Their brooder is off the ground on a styrofoam pad. I use a small animal heat pad AND a hover plate brooder on the lowest level, it is on an angle so they can have temp differences. They are 4 days old today. Unlike my chickens they seem to sleep lying on their sides. Which i think is odd, but I read is normal for quail? I also see them standing towards the front during the day and stretching up to touch the heat plate instead of moving to the back where they can not have to reach up? First morning, I woke up there was one dead. I did not think much of it, that chick I thought was a little gimpy. Yesterday 2 more, one had trapped itself under the paper towel. I fixed that. Couldn't explain the other one. This morning another two dead! NO IDEA WHY... no mucky bums, they appear to be eating, drinking, pooping and growing. I have NEVER lost a chicken chick ever! How can I mess up and loose 4 quail in as many days? What am I doing wrong? Is the bottom heat pad and the overhead brooder heat plate too much heat? HELP please I really don't want to loose any more and need to sort out what I am doing wrong before I order more eggs. From a different seller in case there is genetic trouble? I did ask for all jumbo pharaoh, ended up with two yellow chicks with stripped backs. Seller said "that sometimes happens they grow as big as the jumbos". Ironically, those two which I slated for cull have actually survived. But I am really worried as I thought after the first three days losses would stop and here on the morning of day 4 my 7 chicks are down the three. Its heartbreaking, please tell me what I am doing wrong!
