Sudden coturnix quail death :(

[quail1999]

Hi BYC experts! I really need help with this. I came out to the greenhouse this morning to find four of my beloved pet quail, Calico, Cricket, Charlie and Spice dead. I was devastated and still am. I need to find out what killed my coturnix quail to make sure my other 6 quail are okay too!

Here are the facts:

I keep them on dirt in a greenhouse.
It doesn't get too hot- it gets to 50 degrees max during the day, and about freezing at night.
The greenhouse is 12x8 feet
They have been in the greenhouse for around 2 weeks, and before that i kept them on wire, but they picked at eachother nonstop.
They were a&m coturnix, only a few months old.
They weren't laying eggs.
They were all dead laying next to each other in one corner, and they all died on the same night.
There was NO blood anywhere and they had no visible injuries
They seemed extremely healthy and normal.
There is compost in the greenhouse ( Fruits, veggies and occasional bread ) but no fertilizer or pestisides.
3 males 1 female died
There were no holes that predators could have entered the greenhouse in.
They eat 24% protein quail food.
They have water at all times.
I got them around 2 months ago.
They have never come in contact with other birds.
The others seem fine!


Please help me! I love these birds and i couldn't stand if any others died...

 

[FenDruadin]

So sorry to hear of your loss.

My first thought is that it got too cold... that would explain why they were huddled in a corner and all died together... but it doesn't make sense that the others are fine. I'd expect them all to huddle together if they were cold...

How many males do you have left? Any chance the dominant male drove the others off the "warmth pile," and they weren't able to keep warm enough with only four rather than six?

Other possibility is that they got into something... don't know what though, since there are no chemicals in there.

Can you provide warmth somehow? A space heater, perhaps, that they can get close to when it gets cold? Or a brood lamp? Just be careful about fire hazards, but a little help with heat at night can't hurt.

Wish I had more ideas. It is very strange. Hope you figure it out and that the others stay safe. Hugs!!

 

[moorcroft]

hi i would go with the have frozen with them all being next to each other trying to keep warm

 

[FenDruadin]

Another thought occurs to me... maybe they DID all huddle together, but a few of them were on the outside and just couldn't keep warm enough... again, the fact that so many were males indicates to me that maybe the dominant male kept them out of the warm center.

How cold does it get at night where you are?

 

[FenDruadin]

Oh, and did you recently have a sudden drop in temps? If they were used to being indoors or more sheltered, and then outdoors followed by a sudden freeze, that would have implications for their ability to weather the cold.

 

[quail1999]

Oh, so cold may be the culprit. Interesting! I had waaaay to many males ( 4 males, 6 females ) So perhaps that's what happened. They have been exposed to the cold for a while now, though, and last night wasn't very cold.
It gets pretty cold at night here in winter, below freezing. There are no drafts though... They have a heat lamp, but i will move it closer to where they could be warmer. Thank you! Now i only have one male so i hope it's not a problem.

Could they have been spooked by a predator from outside the greenhouse?

 

[FenDruadin]

Now you've got one male, five females? Perfect. Not that the loss is a good thing, but looking on the bright side, this will make management easier.

Yeah, just make sure that heat source is somewhere really obvious and pleasant to them. It's possible they will select an area that feels more secure over an area that is warm, so try to make the area as secure-feeling as possible for them. This is especially true if they feel a threat from a predator outside--they don't know the predator can't get in. You might even want to make them a secure area that you shut them into at night for now.

 

[moorcroft]

im in the uk and all mine are in a brick building with light and heat otherwise i would lose them over here

 

[moorcroft]

what some poeple do over here is put a plastck box upside down cut a hole in one end so they have a house it just keeps the frost of