Sick quail

[Bodette]

Hello, I am looking for some advise on quail illnesses.
I had 4 courtnix kept in a covered run so wild birds can’t get to them. One of the girls in the picture was off for a couple of weeks. She seemed very lethargic, with puffed up feathers and her eyes sometimes closed. She still ate and dust bathed. I took her to the vet who couldn’t find anything wrong. She sadly died 2 weeks ago. We don’t know how old she was.
The picture is of her about 2 weeks before she died.
The problem is today I think one of the other girls is showing the same symptoms. She was always very lively, but seems much quieter and puffy.
Does anyone have any suggestions and could if he passed on from the other bird, or too much time has passed. We live in London and the vets aren’t very knowledgeable on quails.
Thank you for your help.

 

[Nabiki]

Two weeks is not out of the question for disease incubation. I would separate this one from the rest of your birds immediately. This will not only protect the rest of your covey, but will also let you observe her more closely.

Keep her clean and warm. If she's not eating, you might try adding a bit of Nutri-drench or Save-a-chick to her water.

Some questions for you:
Is she eating? drinking?
How does her poop look?
Are there any other symptoms other than lethargy and puffed feathers?
Is there any nasal discharge?
Are her eyes clear?
What are you feeding her?

@007Sean has a lot of experience and can perhaps give some more advice.

 

[007Sean]

Can you get a picture of their poop? Those symptoms can be several things affecting them....blood in the poop, yellowish, runny poop, nasal discharge, etc.

 

[Bodette]

Thank you for your replies. She is eating and drinking as usual, still moving round, coming for food etc she just seems “off” and puffy.
Her poop is normal, no blood and not runny, but the one who died was the same. She also hadn’t lost weight, but she had always been a very small bird.
Her eyes are clear and there is no nasal discharge. This is her on Monday.
They are fed a mixture of wild bird seed, chick crumb, mealworms and greens.

 

[Nabiki]

Her diet isn't good for her and could be the problem. Can you get some game bird crumble for her? You're feeding her almost all treats. Treats should not be more than 10% of her diet.

 

[007Sean]

Thank you for your replies. She is eating and drinking as usual, still moving round, coming for food etc she just seems “off” and puffy.
Her poop is normal, no blood and not runny, but the one who died was the same. She also hadn’t lost weight, but she had always been a very small bird.
Her eyes are clear and there is no nasal discharge. This is her on Monday.
They are fed a mixture of wild bird seed, chick crumb, mealworms and greens.

I would cut out the seeds being fed, and give the mealworms sparingly, as a treat and treats should be no more than 10% of their total diet.
They should be fed a complete and balanced feed ration of 20 to 24% protein for grown birds. If all you have are hens than a layer ration could be fed, if all you are looking for is eggs. There is too much calcium in layer rations for male birds....if you have male birds also?

What is the weather like where they are being kept? Cold, hot, etc.

 

[Bodette]

Her diet isn't good for her and could be the problem. Can you get some game bird crumble for her? You're feeding her almost all treats. Treats should not be more than 10% of her diet.

I tried them on game bird food and they wouldn’t eat it. They are the fussiest animals I have ever owned. I will try some other varieties.
The one who died I had had for nearly a year whereas the one who is now not looking so well I have had about 6 months.

 

[Bodette]

I would cut out the seeds being fed, and give the mealworms sparingly, as a treat and treats should be no more than 10% of their total diet.
They should be fed a complete and balanced feed ration of 20 to 24% protein for grown birds. If all you have are hens than a layer ration could be fed, if all you are looking for is eggs. There is too much calcium in layer rations for male birds....if you have male birds also?

What is the weather like where they are being kept? Cold, hot, etc.

There is one male and the others are girls. They have just started to lay again as the days are longer.
They are outside and it’s spring here, so very mild (about 18 degrees). They were out all winter but well insulated and it was only occasionally below freezing.

 

[Nabiki]

Just like people, it takes a while for the symptoms of malnutrition to show. It will also take different amounts of time for each individual. I do think you will see improvement once they start getting proper nutrition.

 

[007Sean]

There is one male and the others are girls. They have just started to lay again as the days are longer.
They are outside and it’s spring here, so very mild (about 18 degrees). They were out all winter but well insulated and it was only occasionally below freezing.

Are they in 'damp conditions'? Could be mold/fungus spores causing respiratory problems.