Updated: bloody beaks....why??...Now...chicks just dying! 6/3

[yotetrapper]

The box was pretty small. About 2'x2' and had 48 quail in it. They are not huddling, are spread out good, I did not take an actual temp reading though. I just took a beak count as well as I could and came up with 31. That means I've lost 17 in the past week. They have plenty of food and water. There water is in a quail waterer, and their food is ground meat bird food, as I can not find game bird starter... is the food the problem? should they be on something different?

 

[Bettacreek]

My brooders are 20L, and I usually don't have very many birds in each. I'd say to try to split them up, see if that helps.

 

[Mrs MIA]

It might be... I don't know if 5-8% more protein would help, or if there's something in the feed that is not good for them. Sometimes broiler feed has other things added to help with the growth that the little quail just can't handle.
That is a pretty tiny space... maybe try a larger plastic rubbermaid tote til your pen is built? I found some nice deep ones for $6-10 that work really well.

I'm so sorry...

I know what you're feeling... I lost 3 more bobwhites over the course of the night. Just flattened.

 

[Friend of Feathers]

If picking starts, make sure the room you have them in has no outside light coming in and use the darkest red lamp you can find..

if you have windows cover them up with card board or something to stop outside light from entering your brooder room. make sure the brooder is not to hot as that will cause picking to start fast..

once it starts it tough to stop them.. also give more space if possible and one also could put a lite layer of hay in the brooder and it may help take there Lil minds off picking..

Wilds of pa-I took your advice, but I lost another one a little while ago. I was told not to give them water until they were 10 days old, just an orange cut into 1/8th. They were doing fine, other than the picking until I put the red light on them. I don't know if it's a coincidence or if they aren't adjusting to it very well. I think I should give them water, but DH says I just need to let them get used to all the changes I've already made.

Has anyone ever heard of the orange method?​

 

[yotetrapper]

No... why would you not give them water, I wonder? I say give them water, just not in a waterer they can drown in. If you dont have a "quail" waterer, place little rocks in the base of the waterer so they can't drown in it.

 

[skywatcher]

If the quail are scattered then your light is making it to hot for them. Place therometer under light adjust light height from floor to get 90 degree temperture.the area for the quail seems confined since there is also a waterer and feeder in that 2ft x 2 ft. I moisten the food with water only feed enought for them to clean up in aday.They love the moisten food and leave the dry alone I just mosten the food up to week 2 they must have water .I also have millet seeds for them to eat my feeders are flat ash trays from dollar store for the chicks.

You might put a sliced tomatoe in cage give them something else to peck at. I wonder if glass marbles would entertain them?

 

[luvarabhorses]

Yote, We add wildbird food to our quail/pheasants diet. Just wondering if some birdseed run through a blender would help?
L.

 

[Friend of Feathers]

I gave them water today. Wow! they went crazy for it. It made me feel guilty for not giving it to them earlier. I also found some mealworms. They LOVE them some mealworms. Since they've been drinking water and eating that extremely high protien in the mealworms, they've pretty much quit picking at eachother. I lost three this morning, but none since the new diet. There's a few that are a little weak, but they are eating and drinking, so I think they'll pull through.

Thanks to everyone for your input and suggestions. I never would have thought raising quail would be so worrisome. Hopefully next time all the trial and error I dealt with this go round will pay off.

 

[luvarabhorses]

Yote, i think i have the answer.
Take a 1/2 pint or so, just small, container with a lid

Put 2 tablespoons of Daniva yogurt in it
Put 2 tablespoons of Activia yogurt in it
Put a tablespoon of Optizyme by Manna Pro (tractor supply)
Put three tablespoons of ground flax seed (in grocery store)
three drops of Poly vi sol w/o Iron (it comes both ways- read label!)

and....
about a teaspoon or so of fresh horse manure from a horse that has been wormed a week or so ago with ivermectin (up to date on wormer)

add enough water where it is a paste

shake well

change water back to clear after 24 hours

sounds like a witches concoction but this, added to their water, about a tablespoon to a pint, left for 24 hours, really changes things around

the flax is ground to the point they can drink it, or just add it to their diet if they will eat it, stimulates intestines and colon

put remainder in frig and add to water once a week

 

[yotetrapper]

I may have figured it out myself...we'll see. I found two very live quail yesterday morning with their entire top beak torn right off. They had only bottom beaks. So I figured something MUST be ripping off their beaks. Since I couldnt find anything they might be catching their beaks on, I changed everything. I took them out of thier box and put them into a plastic tote. I took the top off their feeder. Yesterday, the two beakless ones died, but no one else...YET. We'll see.

Thanks for the recipe tho. I could find all the ingredients, but might have trouble finding horse manure... really not sure I'd want to feed them manure anyways....