curled foot usually isn't an issue unless the bird is more then a few days old(in which case best thing to do is to take the furniture feet pads, the ones with the sticky side, spread their foot out and stick it on there, i've heard it works good). If you were stuck in an egg for 17 days your feet would be a little messed up too.
as far as the food, you should be fine, I do the same thing, the food processor, if the feed is to big as well. The eggs, you can give them the whole thing, i just take them and put in food processor and blend down until feed size, they eat it up like crazy.
only thing i suggest is finding a 24%+ feed, whether it be GBS or turkey starter it doesn't mattter, as long as its NON-MEDICATED. This is the only important part with button quails. I am a firm believer in not giving medicated feed, some do, i don't. You usually won't find any GBS that is medicated, but if you go for a turkey starter they are usually medicated. Its not good for buttons b/c those feeds are medicated in accordance to being fed to 40lbs birds, not 6oz birds, the medicated i believe it to much for such a small body, some people have said it causes sterility in male. I just stay away from medicated feeds altogether.
hope it helps. and hope you got my PM
But whoever told you that chicken food would do for baby buttons was mistaken, they need something higher protien than that if they are to do well.
