Sick Coturnix Quail

[FishThumbs]

Hello! Very new to quail raising and birds in general. He quite literally fell into my lap as he was living un very poor conditions at the vet hospital i work at. (He was property of one of the head doctors, not the hospitals)

Anywho fast forward, little dude is between 5 - 7 years old, so an older guy. He seemed fine at first, but i started noticing random blood spots in cage. His mobility had declined, and i found a very infected looking region at the end of what would be his tail. One follicle looks swollen, doesnt have a feather poking out, but does have ehat looks the be the start of one potential impacted. Then two holes, one on either side of said bump. Yellow discharge was caked in the area, so i have since cleaned and chlorhexed this area. It seems less irritated, but the holes arent closing and the lump is still present. I suspect he has a list of issues, definitely leg mites, potentially some others as well (he grooms constantly it seems, but not causing lesions). Isolated him to let leg heal, and to make wound care easier. Joints were swollen in that leg, but has since improved. Scales still lifted from suspecred mites. Hes almost through a corid treatment, and I've just been using some more natural remedies in fear of giving a med he can't tolerate.

So my question is, although he has improved, he seems to have hit a platuea. What antibiotics would you give? What would you use to treat the coop he is in as well as his own body for potential mites? (If he has any)

Poop is back to looking normal, still not sure where the blood came from. I have no known history on him other than his age and that he lived with a dove at one point, but otherwise alone (sad i know)

Thanking you all in advance!!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Welcome To BYC

Can you please post photos of him, his legs, poop and the infected area at his tail?

Could you possibly be seeing his preening gland at that tail, it is a raised area with a little hole in it that if pressed releases a tiny amount of oil.

How are you treating the Leg Mites? I would apply vaseline to the legs.

For the body mites/lice, I would dust him with a Permethrin based poultry dust.
Clean out his bedding and treat his cage too.
Do this in 5-7 days intervals.

Sadly, if he's that old, then age is surely catching up to him too.

What do you feed?

 

[FishThumbs]

Welcome To BYC

Can you please post photos of him, his legs, poop and the infected area at his tail?

Could you possibly be seeing his preening gland at that tail, it is a raised area with a little hole in it that if pressed releases a tiny amount of oil.

How are you treating the Leg Mites? I would apply vaseline to the legs.

For the body mites/lice, I would dust him with a Permethrin based poultry dust.
Clean out his bedding and treat his cage too.
Do this in 5-7 days intervals.

Sadly, if he's that old, then age is surely catching up to him too.

What do you feed?

Will absolutely post pictures this evening! He is still in good spirits, I have him on a higher protein game bird crumble right now, 30%. He also has grit avail

In the mean time until I can show you photo's, his stool is more formed now, with occasional foam and is pretty much the same color as the crumble. Before it was more liquidy (not quite diarrhea, not quite formed) with a more yellowish hue to it, and occasionally black. Treated him with liquid corid for about 7 days and that all resolved.

As far as the mites go, I've been putting aquafor on his legs! Honestly, I just didn't have any vaseline sitting around and figured it would work the same. Any product suggestions for the permethrin dust? My concern is safety, I see a lot of dog safe products, but several non cat safe products. Just thinking worst case scenario here. Is DE something you'd reccomend for upkeep? I have read it is toxic to their lungs.

Upon further inspection, that "lump" is definitely his preen gland. However the holes are worrisome, one on either lobe. Is that normal for release? Bare with me, these photos will help tremendously. Will post around 6pm eastern time US.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Aquaphor should work just fine on the legs.

You can find Permethrin based poultry dust and sprays at stores like TSC.
Permethrin is toxic to cats. DE is just not an effective solution to fighting an infestation and it can be hard on the lungs. I prefer using Permethrin dust on the birds themselves, put a little of the powder into a sock, then tap it onto their feathers, working into the feathers and down to the skin.
Spray can be used on the birds and housing if that's what you prefer. You can buy it already mixed or in concentrate and mix it yourself.

Do you provide a dust bathing tub or bowl for your Quail? If not, he would enjoy that. A mix of peat moss with sand works well. That's what I use.

Glad the poop is starting to look good.
Looking forward to your photos.