Quail flooring

[Yo Yo Oreo]

Hi everyone, I am having a real tough time with the flooring in my quail cage. Here's a little back info if it helps at all. I keep my quail indoors in the basement. They are in an elevated cage so I don't have to bend over to tend with them (I have bad hips). Most my issues revolve around water.

Initially I started outdoor on wire and they did fine. I moved them indoors in the fall so I could add lights and keep egg production up. At that point I read about issues wire can cause and wanted to go with a flat floor for them to walk on.

I started with pine chips. They would kick the pine into the water and it would soak up the water. At times they piled the chips so they soaked water and starting to soak surrounding chips. They would also clog it up with chips so bad by the time I got home there wasn't much "water" to even drink from.

I went to sand next. Same thing. They kicked up a pile into the water bowl and the water emptied fully, making most of the cage very wet and they had no water to drink. I went to dirt because I thought I could do a natural attempt with plants and grass. They ruined that in about 2 days so now it's just dirt. Same issues, dirt piles into the waterer and, at this point, it feels rather unsanitary. The cage is 2' X 8' so decent size for 11 quail. I even removed the dirt from half the tank, put water on the far end of the empty side and they kick dirt all 4' across and somehow still shove it in the water. Not to mention how much dust has gotten all over the room too.

At this point it feels like they need to be on wire again. They were so happy when I moved them to solid floors though and still seem happier than the wire floors. The other option I have is to have a bare floor and lay down these puppy pee pads. I use them in the brooder since their rather easy to pull up and change out. My concern is that they will be walking around on their poop while I am gone all day.

What route would you take if you had to choose? I am also very open to other suggestions if anyone has any. If I go with wire floor I'll put something like cardboard inside to stand on so I can easily throw it out.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I use high bowls that they can't kick stuff in and use shavings

 

[FloorCandy]

I feel your pain, the easiest solution is something like this:

You can order the nipples on amazon and drill them into any size container, this keeps them from kicking stuff into the water. When I introduce the new style to chicks, I push the little silver nipple to let a drop into the tiny area under it, I do this every couple hours for a day, and by then they’ve all mastered it. You will notice an immediate difference in the smell of the cage.

I put a chinese takeout lid, the rectangle shaped ones, down under the bottle to raise it a bit so they don’t bury the nipples in chips, and it has a flat surface to sit on above the chips.

 

[Nepenthes]

I have 3 feet wide wire bottom and the rest is dirt. I put my water into the far corner of the wire bottom and have a bit of dirt in the water but not that much.

How about put a little divider between the water and the dirt? will that work? you can use a short rebar/garden stake to stake the into the ground and attach any plastic sheet to it. I used those corrugated plastic sign, it's light weight and easy to cut and make hole to attached to my stake.

 

[Yo Yo Oreo]

I feel your pain, the easiest solution is something like this:
View attachment 2506468

You can order the nipples on amazon and drill them into any size container, this keeps them from kicking stuff into the water. When I introduce the new style to chicks, I push the little silver nipple to let a drop into the tiny area under it, I do this every couple hours for a day, and by then they’ve all mastered it. You will notice an immediate difference in the smell of the cage.

I put a chinese takeout lid, the rectangle shaped ones, down under the bottle to raise it a bit so they don’t bury the nipples in chips, and it has a flat surface to sit on above the chips.

That's an idea I would not have thought of! Are they just normal chicken water nipples? I might be ordering me a pack of these tonight to try out.

 

[FloorCandy]

That's an idea I would not have thought of! Are they just normal chicken water nipples? I might be ordering me a pack of these tonight to try out.

Yes just normal nipples, the ones I bought are rentacoop brand.

 

[CovidtimeQuail]

Several items I've learned through trial and error. Sand is great, in a sandbox with sides high enough that they can't kick it out or mix it with other stuff. They'll need a short-step up to get in and out though. The sand can also be sifted then washed, then reused.

I have a vinyl flooring board propped up on a riser for them to rest their feet when they're tired of wire. Vinyl flooring is amazingly durable and waterproof and can be washed easily. Home Depot will sell single pieces so you don't have to get the whole box. A well placed plank will also serve as a step into the sandbox.

Those are my two thoughts.

 

[CovidtimeQuail]

Here's a picture of my go-to quail rest/riser made of a vinyl plank. The base is ground turkey tray secured with a screw and wingnut. I've been using this for almost a year now.

 

[vall]

I have the same problem in my brooder. I will probably raise the water up with a few levels of bricks for my next hatch. For whatever reason the same setup (water on top of a brick) works outdoors but not inside.

 

[Nepenthes]

I feel your pain, the easiest solution is something like this:
View attachment 2506468

You can order the nipples on amazon and drill them into any size container, this keeps them from kicking stuff into the water. When I introduce the new style to chicks, I push the little silver nipple to let a drop into the tiny area under it, I do this every couple hours for a day, and by then they’ve all mastered it. You will notice an immediate difference in the smell of the cage.

I put a chinese takeout lid, the rectangle shaped ones, down under the bottle to raise it a bit so they don’t bury the nipples in chips, and it has a flat surface to sit on above the chips.

Somehow my quail is not strong enough to get water from something similar. Yours are doing well though?