CuriousCreature
In the Brooder
- May 3, 2015
- 21
- 0
- 22
About a month ago I rehomed two little button quail from a woman who's young grand-daughter had bought them from a pet shop and then shortly lost interest. While she meant well, she didn't know how to take care of them, and the two buttons had spent six months in a bare cage in a gloomy shed with nothing but chicken feed to eat. They were shabby and stressed. To cut a long story short, I followed the care guides carefully and they are now living a life of luxury as indoor pets. Plucked feathers are growing back in, and their sweet personalities are shining through. They've been named Pop and Squirm, after the fiasco of attempting to handle them for the first time!
Their genders, however, remain a bit of a mystery. While the most likely case is that they're both male, I'm confused by them constantly exhibiting both rooster and hen behaviour. As it stands currently, I am not capable of checking under their skirts so to speak, because I can barely keep hold of them when I do have to grab them on cage-cleaning day. They are very nervous birds. So I will list what I have learned from observing them.
- They are both silver, both with a small white patch on their chests (not a bib - just an irregular 'splodge'). They are believed to be about a year old.
- No eggs have been produced.
- Pop is the more flighty of the two and has a fluffy unkempt tail whereas Squirm's comes to a neat point.
- Pop frequently mates with Squirm, especially in the mornings; pursuing and grabbing the neck feathers - the normal scenario.
- However, Squirm will occasionally do the mounting instead.
- But more often, Squirm will willingly present itself to Pop before mating occurs, flattening itself on the ground and squealing.
- When I give them some mealworms, they will take one each, then start chirruping and offering the worm to each other. I'm aware that this is usually a courtship display, but I don't understand why they both try to offer their worm to the other at the same time.
- Pop will crow 'pew pew pew' every evening. I have only ever heard Squirm utter a single answering 'pew'.
- Pop paces up and down the cage a lot, while Squirm is pretty laid back. Pop will also sometimes raise its body up and strut about on tip-toe, with wings fanned out. I have never seen Squirm do this.
- They will occasionally squabble - an average of once every few days. It is usually Pop who bullies Squirm, charging and pecking - notably different from the mating behaviour. Squirm will hide and make distressed squawks for a while and then they'll suddenly be friends again.
- Apart from those instances they are very sweet to each other, always sharing out food and snuggling up together in the evenings.
All in all, they just seem very confused! For as long as they remain happy in each other company for the majority of the time, it's of little consequence if they are indeed both male, but it's killing me not knowing! And it would be lovely to have some eggs, fertile or otherwise.
What do you guys think?
(Pop is on the left - note the fluffy tail.)
Their genders, however, remain a bit of a mystery. While the most likely case is that they're both male, I'm confused by them constantly exhibiting both rooster and hen behaviour. As it stands currently, I am not capable of checking under their skirts so to speak, because I can barely keep hold of them when I do have to grab them on cage-cleaning day. They are very nervous birds. So I will list what I have learned from observing them.
- They are both silver, both with a small white patch on their chests (not a bib - just an irregular 'splodge'). They are believed to be about a year old.
- No eggs have been produced.
- Pop is the more flighty of the two and has a fluffy unkempt tail whereas Squirm's comes to a neat point.
- Pop frequently mates with Squirm, especially in the mornings; pursuing and grabbing the neck feathers - the normal scenario.
- However, Squirm will occasionally do the mounting instead.
- But more often, Squirm will willingly present itself to Pop before mating occurs, flattening itself on the ground and squealing.
- When I give them some mealworms, they will take one each, then start chirruping and offering the worm to each other. I'm aware that this is usually a courtship display, but I don't understand why they both try to offer their worm to the other at the same time.
- Pop will crow 'pew pew pew' every evening. I have only ever heard Squirm utter a single answering 'pew'.
- Pop paces up and down the cage a lot, while Squirm is pretty laid back. Pop will also sometimes raise its body up and strut about on tip-toe, with wings fanned out. I have never seen Squirm do this.
- They will occasionally squabble - an average of once every few days. It is usually Pop who bullies Squirm, charging and pecking - notably different from the mating behaviour. Squirm will hide and make distressed squawks for a while and then they'll suddenly be friends again.
- Apart from those instances they are very sweet to each other, always sharing out food and snuggling up together in the evenings.
All in all, they just seem very confused! For as long as they remain happy in each other company for the majority of the time, it's of little consequence if they are indeed both male, but it's killing me not knowing! And it would be lovely to have some eggs, fertile or otherwise.
What do you guys think?
(Pop is on the left - note the fluffy tail.)
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