Unwell quail - please help :)

[Birds1243]

My female quail has recently become very unwell. She hasn’t laid an egg in a while. Recently started not eating as much and has lost weight. Her crop also seems to be full and she drinking a lot. Her poo isn’t normal. I am unsure how to help her recover fully. Would love any advice please

 

[Nabiki]

Let's start by getting some more information:
1 - What kind of quail? I'm guessing coturnix, but it's best to be sure.
2 - How old is she?
3 - What does her poop look like (pictures would be best)
4 - What are you feeding her?
5 - What is her home like?
6 - Are any of your other quail showing any symptoms?

I would start by giving her some Nutri-Drench to give her some energy to help her fight whatever this is off. I would also separate her from the rest of her covey in case she's contagious.

If she is pooping, that means that she's not egg bound. She may have stopped laying due to lack of light. Coturnix usually need at least 14 hours of light per day to lay.

 

[Birds1243]

Let's start by getting some more information:
1 - What kind of quail? I'm guessing coturnix, but it's best to be sure.
2 - How old is she?
3 - What does her poop look like (pictures would be best)
4 - What are you feeding her?
5 - What is her home like?
6 - Are any of your other quail showing any symptoms?

I would start by giving her some Nutri-Drench to give her some energy to help her fight whatever this is off. I would also separate her from the rest of her covey in case she's contagious.

If she is pooping, that means that she's not egg bound. She may have stopped laying due to lack of light. Coturnix usually need at least 14 hours of light per day to lay.

Yes she is a cortunix. She is under a year I think, not entirely sure as I didn’t have her as a chick. She usually eats crumbs and loves lettuce however since she’s been unwell I’ve encouraged egg and ACV in water. Her poo was completely white and more liquid however I have just seen that it seem to be white with green (will try get a pic next time) I only have one other quail and he seems to be doing well. Large rabbit cage with straw for bedding and a section for food and water. The vet gave her energy fluid.

 

[Nabiki]

What kind of crumbs is she eating? Lettuce is a treat, and treats should not be more than 10% of her diet.

The poop sounds like normal poop for a bird that is not eating. See if you can get some Nutri-drench for her. Is she eating the egg yolk? Boiled and crushed, right?

Pictures of her and her home would be good when you get the chance.

 

[Birds1243]

What kind of crumbs is she eating? Lettuce is a treat, and treats should not be more than 10% of her diet.

The poop sounds like normal poop for a bird that is not eating. See if you can get some Nutri-drench for her. Is she eating the egg yolk? Boiled and crushed, right?

Pictures of her and her home would be good when you get the chance.

This is her crumb -

 

[Birds1243]

What kind of crumbs is she eating? Lettuce is a treat, and treats should not be more than 10% of her diet.

The poop sounds like normal poop for a bird that is not eating. See if you can get some Nutri-drench for her. Is she eating the egg yolk? Boiled and crushed, right?

Pictures of her and her home would be good when you get the chance.

Yes I have been giving her boiled crushed egg. Any ideas on how I could get her healthy and well again?

 

[Nabiki]

See if you can find an all flock crumble and give her calcium on the side. What you're giving her is intended for chickens. Quail have different nutritional needs from chickens. While adult coturnix may do okay on chicken layer feed, if they have problems, they need proper feed.

For now, keep her warm and isolated. Get her some proper feed (turkey feed will work if you can't find gamebird feed) and see if she'll eat it. It sounds like she's already been to the vet. Did they do any tests for diseases? Your vet will be able to tell you if antibiotics are a good idea or not.

 

[Birds1243]

See if you can find an all flock crumble and give her calcium on the side. What you're giving her is intended for chickens. Quail have different nutritional needs from chickens. While adult coturnix may do okay on chicken layer feed, if they have problems, they need proper feed.

For now, keep her warm and isolated. Get her some proper feed (turkey feed will work if you can't find gamebird feed) and see if she'll eat it. It sounds like she's already been to the vet. Did they do any tests for diseases? Your vet will be able to tell you if antibiotics are a good idea or not.

They are kept with warmth however I struggle to isolate her as there are only two quails and they are bonded very well. Any time they lose sight of each others they begin to consistently call for each other, non stop. Thanks for the advice on feed, I’ll look into that just now and purchase the right one. I took her to the vet and she checked her and found out she had peritonitis. For this, she was given antibiotics and energy fluid to help her fight off the issues. However she then had sour crop and for this reason the vet said the medication wasn’t doing anything as it wasn’t getting to where it needed. The vet didn’t suggest anything about the sour crop. She does however seem to be slightly improving and doesn’t look as bad as she did before. What else could I do about the sour crop to ensure her food is being digested properly.

 

[Nabiki]

@007Sean ? I have been fortunate enough to have never dealt with sour crop, but I have tagged someone with a lot more experience than I have.

 

[007Sean]

@007Sean ? I have been fortunate enough to have never dealt with sour crop, but I have tagged someone with a lot more experience than I have.

The only thing I know that ACV is good for is to help alleviate some of the symptoms of sour crop.
I never have had a quail with sour crop but I have had a few grouse that had sour crop, and ACV is what I used to help with the symptoms.
I have also used Micronazole.
Here's an article about sour crop and how to treat, it's for treating chickens but works with any bird that has a crop.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...w-to-know-which-one-youre-dealing-with.73607/