Quail Making Loud Noise

[QuailExpert]

I have recently been having some "issues" with my quail. every morning when i get up at like 6:30 to get ready for school my quail will start making the loudest chirping noise i have ever heard. she wont stop until i take her out of her pen and hold her or turn off the lights. she has never done this when she was outside and even the first few weeks she cam inside. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to keep her quiet in the mornings? i dont know if its because she doesnt like the light on before the sun is up or what but it is not pleasant to hear what sounds like screaming at 6:30 in the morning haha.

 

[JaeG]

Females will call loudly when they are separated from friends. Do you have other quail that she's calling out to perhaps, or maybe she can hear other quail close by (their hearing is much better than ours)? If she's on her own she's probably lonely and calling out for a mate or some friends.

 

[sourland]

Sounds as if she is calling for a mate.

 

[QuailExpert]

she had had to be separated from her flock because her head was super bloody from over mating and she was the lowest on the pecking scale. we sold the rest of the flock so i kept her to keep her from getting an infection in her head and dying. she only does this in the morning too.

 

[JaeG]

Quail are social birds so she will be lonely on her own and wondering where her flock went. The morning does tend to be when they call for their mate (even if he was being a beast) and females can get very loud.

It may have only been one or two birds that were picking on her. Occasionally you get a trouble maker but a week separated (but still in view of the flock) usually sorts them out.

If you want her to stop calling you will need to give her a quail friend. Another female would do just fine and that prevents anymore mating injuries. You will need to have them separated but in view of each other for a week then introduce them in neutral territory. Get one that is the same colour as she had in her flock because sometimes they can be a bit racist when it comes to colours.

 

[Devunisaacs]

Hmm now that you said about her being taken away from getting pecked on makes much more sense now... with her only doing it in the morning I do not understand it could be because of the light but I am a little stumped haha... maybe give her a female friend so she at least has someone to have with her

 

[QuailExpert]

i will have to have a conversation with my parents about getting her a friend. she had been separated before she came inside from her flock in a separate pen in the back corner of our lawn. she may have been still able to hear them though. the thing is i tried multiple times to put her back into the flock after her wounds completely healed but they always seemed to completely tear apart her head within a few hours, i felt super bad for her so that is when i convinced my parents to let her inside

 

[JaeG]

Poor little thing getting beat up by the bullies. They can be really frustrating birds but once they like their cage mates (sometimes personalities just seem to clash for some reason ) things are generally really peaceful. It could be with spring around the corner she's feeling the need to have some company. You'd just need a single female so it's not like they'd need a bigger cage. Could you put a temporary screen in the cage to divide it in two so they get used to each other?

I set up a group recently and they were fine for ages until the male took to one of the females. So I tried a different male and one female is terrorizing him but not hurting him (she just won't let him out of the enclosed part of their cage)! All the other girls love him and he's being very respectful. I may have to split them into two groups (there are more than enough girls). It's just very frustrating so I do understand.

 

[Devunisaacs]

i will have to have a conversation with my parents about getting her a friend. she had been separated before she came inside from her flock in a separate pen in the back corner of our lawn. she may have been still able to hear them though. the thing is i tried multiple times to put her back into the flock after her wounds completely healed but they always seemed to completely tear apart her head within a few hours, i felt super bad for her so that is when i convinced my parents to let her inside

Awe poor little thing I hate when the other guys don't accept the little ones it sucks seeing them get beat up.. you did the right thing though by taking her out

 

[lomine]

For now you could try an unbreakable mirror or a little stuffed animal for her to cuddle with. But in the long run she will be much happier with another quail.