quail chicks play dead?

[Fraoch21]

i have quail chicks atm, 2 days old but the yellow one always lies on its back and flops its head like its dead. it gave me the fright of my life when i actually thought it was dead. can quail chicks learn to play dead? should i be worried by its behaviour? thanks

 

[mhwc56]

Hahahahaha...EVERYONE who hatches encounters this...it is just happy/relaxed sleepy chickpea mode

 

[Fraoch21]

awhh thats so sweet

thank goodness theres nothing wrong

 

[mhwc56]

nope nothing wrong at all.it does give a person a scare the first few times though when you see them do it .

 

[Wifezilla]

I have 6 babies in the process of giving me heart attacks right now. Legs kicked out, looking all deflated and dead..... then pop up and head for the feed dish

 

[Fraoch21]

hahah, its so cute, wish had more

 

[ScaredOfShadows]

yup I got my first four quail last weekend, I have a hidey cave for them, looked in there and there is one in particular that does it, gets in there and all I see is legs splayed straight out, and a wing tip all lax...lays the same way all the time, another one has a preference for the top of the 'cave', and lays out across it all playing dead. It is too funny. I am loving having quail and just how silly they are.

 

[Fraoch21]

they are the cutest baby birds ive had, this is my first 3 quail aswel, hoping to breed them later on

mine have a faux fur cuff off a jacket to cuddle into, so sweet when they think they are hiding by sticking they're heads in with bums hanging out

btw i dont know what colour variations i was getting when buying these quail, i think 2 are golden but the other is pure yellow and i thought it was gonna be a&m but dont they normally have black on their heads?

 

[Rte.66_chicks]

I have seen wild quail babies play dead. Mom took off with the broken wing trick, and I looked in the little bush that she started from. There were several fuzzy marble-sized babies in there, holding still. Very cute!

 

[JJMR794]

Hang On A Second... You Say Its Lying On Its Back And Shaking Its Head? If So That Is Not Normal Coturnix Behavior... Yes They Routinely Flop Down On Their Sides And Stretch Their Legs/ Feet Out, But On Their Back?- No, Not Normal