Slow Night Here In Quailville

[jenjscott]

Well, I got rid of the last of the coturnx for the winter. Will restart early next year. I will be carrying over the Bobwhites.

 

[chickhopeful12]

I have many coturnix quail chicks available in CT. if anyone is interested...

 

[JJMR794]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHH !!!!!!!!!!!! ........ CENSORED, CENSORED, CENSORED!

JUST LET THE DUCKHOUNDS OUT FOR LAST POTTY CALL AND RUN OUT TO THE CAR TO GRAB A PACK OF SMOKES.... OUT THE BACK DOOR, DOWN THE STAIRS, PARK THE CAR BETWEEN THE HOUSE AND BARN, AS I AM WALKING TO THE CAR I LOOK INTO THE BARN AND A HUGE FREAKKIN BARRED OWL IS PERCHED ON TOP OF MY DOUBLE DECKER GROW OUT PEN LOOKING AT ME WITH A "WHACHA DOOOOIN?" EXPRESSION ON HIS FACE.


PERCHED ON TOP OF THE FREAKIN GROW OUT PEN! I TELL YA THAT TAKES BALLZ AROUND HERE.(AS EDDIE MURPHY SAID IN A MOVE 1 TIME,) "I AM HAVING A VERY BAD DAY! BUT IN MY CASE ITS BEEN BAD YEAR... PREDATORS ARE NON STOP THIS YR. I HAVE HAD TO REINFORCE SO MANY PENS AND RE WORK BIRD CONFINES TO THWART PREDATOT ATTACKS AND STOP APPAULING LOSSES SO MUCH THIS YR THAT I CANT EVEN GET ANY FARM IMPROVEMENTS DONE, AND ITS ALSO WREAKING HAVOK ON MY BUSINESS PLAN THIS YR. I AM SO TICKED OFF NOW IT ISNT EVEN FUNNY...

THIS YEARS LIST INCLUDES RED TAIL HAWKS
RACCONS
POSSUMS
HOUSE CATS
AND OWLS
ALL REPEAT ATTEMPTS BY MULT NUMBERS OF THE USUAL SUSPECTS LISTED ABOVE.... I THINK I HAVE HAD ABOUT EVERYTHING BUT LOCUSTS THIS YR

 

[emvickrey]

I have a stray cat that neither my dog or I can catch, that has been eating my quail right through the bars of the cage then pulling the cage to the floor. The crash usually killed a couple from getting crushed. Now I go out at night and wrap each cage so nothing can get in or out like heads, wings or claws. I used saftey pins to attach the wrap to the bottom edge of one of the cages and on the sides to hold the wrap on then flipped the excess at the top over the cage front where the attacks seem to happen the most. The other cages are wrapped and tied near the bottoms so the cat can't get under. I haven't had anymore losses by the cat since but I think it has caused the quail to become mean or something. I have11 in the house recooperating from attacks. One has a pin sized hole right through it's forehead. They are all healing fine but I can't put them back where they where. And they aren't old enough to process either. I may have to process some of the bigger ones early to make room for these. They all start out growing up in the grow pen together but end up pecking at each other and it's always the Jumbo Browns attacking the manchurens and a & m's. They start at the nose and work their way up the head. If I don't get them out they eat them head first. Really disgusting. If somebody where to come and buy a bunch it would make he very happy. I incubated too many not knowing how much work was involved in taking care of them. It's almost more than what I can handle.

I started this to put meat in the freezer but it has became more expensive of a project than what it's worth. All the poop scooping and tending to injuries. Going out in the middle of the night to check on them to make sure everybody is handling the cold. I nearly lost all my youngest bob whites to the cold even with a heat lamp in there. I did loose 7 and was able to save the rest. They where nearly dead and I put them in the hatcher which is always on even when no eggs are in it. They dropped the temp in the hatcher by 11 degrees they where so cold. It took a few hours for them to warm up enough to come out. I haven't put them back out since. They're living in an aquarium in the kitchen. I have 2 I use for brooders. I have 9 injured quail in the other and 2 older ones in the nursery in separate cages. One has a toe that was nearly bitten off and is all swollen, the bleeding has stopped and the other has it's nose pecked on and was bloody like the 9 in the aquarium. It's mostly the Jumbo Browns doing the damage.
I don't know how people mix them. Mine want to kill each other. Maybe it's being covered up at night and part of the morning. I don't know but I have to do it to keep the cat away.

 

[Buttercup Chillin]

JJMR did you ....trap that owl? To put it nicely.
I came home yesterday to see a small hawk on the top edge of my neighbors roof. Called her and told her to stop tossing meat on her roof. She'll be setting a trap I am sure. I actually borrowed her cat traps to catch my own house cat that wanted to wander under my house in an adventure. GRRRRR. Can of tuna works.

emvickrey: Never had a problem with cats, probably rats, but not cats. Any agressive Browns get culled ( well, except for my biggest breeders). Now I have had Coturnix from the late 70's (come to find out) and they were smallllll, to say the least. I tell you, you are making it harder than it needs to be. If its mean, its processed and microwaved with green salsa for a snack. They are meat birds right? If they are injured and they are not to be breeders, they are processed and marinated in italian dressing and sauteed for an hordourve(spellin????). Yes, I have been wine sexing 1 week old whites. I try to identify the Females as soon as possible and any excuse works for me.

I try not to waste anything. Of course this is provided they are at least 3.5 weeks old. Ya, the whites should have their own grow out pen, I am learning. But I don't have a problem with the J Browns and the M Golds together. If we're talking meanies, well the birds don't like being all bound up. By trying to protect them you might be making them mean, just a thought that popped up. Could be the wine. They are also good marinated in Jalapeno wine, too.


JJMR trap that owl.... I got one around here. Big thing, protected, if I trap it it will go to the wildlife rescue and they can deal with it. When they ask for a donation, I will be sure to laugh. I crow at it now and again and it flys off. Actually I have a hugh white wrought iron bird above my duck house. Since I put that up I have not had any problems with hawks or owls. Well now I have said that who knows.

Good luck.

 

[emvickrey]

I try to keep them long enough to be big enough to use the energy to process it. The small ones are only big enough for my cat a snack. If it's a handful it gets processed. And it is a cat because I caught it in the act once but was more worried about the cage in the floor and the birds in it than the cat. I sent my dog after it but it was faster. There are several that are very close to going to Camp Frigidaire. The A & M's i'm trying to wait till I know which are boys and which are girls before I process any. There are a few that will go as soon as they're big enough. They have too many spots. After I get myself a quad of breeders, the rest will join the others at Camp Frigidaire.

Does anybody have a problem with their breeders getting bumblefoot? It's easy enough to fix on quail but it seems they have some feet issues. Maybe I should put some wood chips in their pen. I just hate the idea of having to pull out a poopy mess from inside the cage. I have them all up where it goes through the wire and hits the floor and I just scoop it up. Any suggestions would be nice on how to remedy this problem. They walk on a 1/2" wire mesh floor

 

[Buttercup Chillin]

I give mine a dust bath, they can get off the wire and they love to play in the sand. They take turns.

Edited to add, set a cat trap cage with some tuna, works around here.

 

[emvickrey]

I have their feeders sitting in the bottoms of a gallon ice cream bucket that I cut down to about an inch tall. When I take out the feeder to refull it they jump in for a roll in whats left in it. It's so cute. And they do take turns. I always take longer to put theirs back till they have all had a turn. I should just leave one in there for them. I guess i'm gonna have to eat more ice cream. Darn

 

[Buttercup Chillin]

Well, having a house cat, I cut down litter cans and use plastic shoe boxes and kitten litter boxes (cheaper) in the bigger pens. The only problem is taking them out to clean out and refill and putting them back in. (I have them 4" tall otherwise they spray it out as fast as I put it in). When I put them back in, they get real heavy very fast, faster than I can get them back in the cage. I look and 3 or 4 have already jumped in. Oh yes, they love their bathies. Makes happy birdies, that don't fight as much.

Also, my largest female breeders kill males that they don't like, and like size competition. So take that with a grain of salt cause I do have one very mean breeder, that is content right now. So I leave that cage alone, she has killed 4 males, I am not about to try changing out males no matter what.

Everyone thinks they are such sweet little things, sure for a few weeks.

Wonder if JJMR has caught that Owl yet?

 

[emvickrey]

I bet laundry detergent bottles would work just as well. I normally use them to make feeders out of. It's less waste as far as feed goes. What do you put in for a dust bath? I can grind up egg shells into dust. Does it matter what it is they dust in? I use tuna cans as treat dishes and I used to grind up egg shells and oyster shell and put in the treat cans and they would spend more time dusting in the can then eating it. Anytime I put anything in that is an open container they are in it and rolling around. They just love a dust bath.
This summer I was processing some quail and there where a pair of Bob Whites that looked pretty old and I really didn't want to bother with the tough meat so I decided to let them go. Well................ As soon as their feet touched the ground they where rolling around in the dirt. They did it till I was done with the quail I had out to process. I just reached down and picked them up and put them back in the cage. I processes them later. I thought about every spot of poison sumac I suffered from when I went out in the woods and rescued them from when a coon got their cage open and killed one of the hens. The other 3 got away. The stray cats would have gotten them. They couldn't fly at all. They went straight down.

Thats one I won't have again is Bob Whites. Those birds are crazy. They are all over the place from day one. Every time I processed any I ended up getting cut up from their claws and it was a struggle with each one. The cortunix don't give such a struggle and are easier to process.