Quail chicks

[The Bean]

Hi guys. I have recently had 4 baby quail hatch. They were in a fan controlled incubator set at 37.5 c. 2 were yellow and 2 were the dark colour. They were all put in the brooder. Both the dark ones have died. They were considerably smaller, didn't develop so well and one had curled feet. I feed them premium food so I am at a loss as to why the 2 dark ones died . Please can someone help with some good advice.

 

[muddy75]

Hi guys. I have recently had 4 baby quail hatch. They were in a fan controlled incubator set at 37.5 c. 2 were yellow and 2 were the dark colour. They were all put in the brooder. Both the dark ones have died. They were considerably smaller, didn't develop so well and one had curled feet. I feed them premium food so I am at a loss as to why the 2 dark ones died . Please can someone help with some good advice.

how many total eggs were set, what day did they hatch, what was the humidity 1st days and at lockdown.....the humidity and hatch timing typically have direct effect on curled feet and other deformities......most common cause of brooder deaths is wetness and related extreme temp change. but based on your description, it sounds like failure to thrive issue caused by malposition or too long in the egg.

 

[JaeG]

Even if you see some eating and drinking don't assume all of them have worked it out. Did you tap the food and water to encourage them to eat and drink? I had one I had to put back in with the littlies (I had a rather staggered hatch due to me not collecting eggs like I should have and with the heat we've had the older eggs got quite a jump start and hatched on day 15). This particular one was lethargic and not doing well. It was touch and go for awhile but I got it eating and drinking and it recovered fully. But occasionally you do get one or two that don't seem right and the first 4 days seem to be the most critical. And often it is the smaller ones that you lose.

 

[jnj3225]

Hi guys. I have recently had 4 baby quail hatch. They were in a fan controlled incubator set at 37.5 c. 2 were yellow and 2 were the dark colour. They were all put in the brooder. Both the dark ones have died. They were considerably smaller, didn't develop so well and one had curled feet. I feed them premium food so I am at a loss as to why the 2 dark ones died . Please can someone help with some good advice.

I had twins.one had curled feet.put peices of band aids,to flatten them out.it may work.the other is also smaller but doing good.

 

[The Bean]

how many total eggs were set, what day did they hatch, what was the humidity 1st days and at lockdown.....the humidity and hatch timing typically have direct effect on curled feet and other deformities......most common cause of brooder deaths is wetness and related extreme temp change. but based on your description, it sounds like failure to thrive issue caused by malposition or too long in the egg.

Hi there. Thanks for taking the time to read and reply. 7 eggs were set and my 1st chick hatched on day 16. The other 3 hatched on day 18. My incubator has an automatic turning function and I followed the instructions on humidity. This is the 2nd batch of eggs from my 2 coturnix quails. Do you think that has a bearing? They are 4 months old.

 

[JaeG]

Is your climate dry or humid? I live in a very humid climate and I have found that a higher humidity during incubation (55-60% - certainly not what is usually recommended) resulted in much better results for me (and the humidity outside the incubator was often around 80%). So you could play around with the humidity to try and figure out what's going to work for your set-up. If your climate is dry you could try keeping the humidity low (but no lower than 25%).

Also, rearrange your eggs to even out any hot or cold spots. All incubators have them it seems so rearranging them every now and then just helps to average out the temperature they are all exposed to. Heat sinks such as a brick or a bottle of water in the incubator helps as well when you haven't put many eggs in there.

 

[The Bean]

Is your climate dry or humid? I live in a very humid climate and I have found that a higher humidity during incubation (55-60% - certainly not what is usually recommended) resulted in much better results for me (and the humidity outside the incubator was often around 80%). So you could play around with the humidity to try and figure out what's going to work for your set-up. If your climate is dry you could try keeping the humidity low (but no lower than 25%).

Also, rearrange your eggs to even out any hot or cold spots. All incubators have them it seems so rearranging them every now and then just helps to average out the temperature they are all exposed to. Heat sinks such as a brick or a bottle of water in the incubator helps as well when you haven't put many eggs in there.

Thanks so much for your help. I am currently incubating 7 more eggs and will follow your advice regarding humidity control and positioning of my eggs. Wish me luck

 

[JaeG]

Thanks so much for your help. I am currently incubating 7 more eggs and will follow your advice regarding humidity control and positioning of my eggs. Wish me luck

I'm definitely wishing you good luck. They are such fun babies to raise.