Quail with neurological symptoms

[RayrayB]

Hi! I'm very new to quail..
I have a 5 week old coturnix that seems to have some neurological issues. She scoots backwards and tucks her head (longer than the poop scoot, ha!), sometimes stumbling. She's much smaller than the other quail and is very scruffy looking (not smooth, healthy feathers like the others). She eats well and drinks well, although she tends to eat laying down in the food pile.
They are in an aviary and I don't think she hit her head (ceiling is high).
Any idea what might be going on? I've started giving her vitamin E but was hoping someone had some experience and suggestions.

 

[Nabiki]

What are you feeding them? It is possible that she was simply born with something wrong and she may not survive.

 

[Susan Skylark]

Is it like an octopus or crayfish scooting backwards away from danger and under a rock? My first hatch had two that did this, one a wry neck the other a runty mutant thing. Both were half the size of other birds and would literally run backwards and kamikaze into whatever was behind them. Usually it was after getting stepped on or to avoid another bird. I think it was a defense mechanism rather than neurological signs. Circling, head pressing, seizures, drunken movements, unable to feel or move a body part, can’t get upright, star gazing, difficulty eating or swallowing are all examples of neurological issues this sounds behavioral. I’d guess he’s got some sort of congenital defect and it probably isn’t fixable, I culled mine for their own sake but that’s a decision you have to make for yourself.