Whats the reason for feather loss

[slashroot]

Thanks for all your replies!

They surely are preening those areas very often, as it's irritating them. Especially when I'm not watching them(they think).

I could surely try a big area for them to sand bath See if that helps over time.

The whole container is due for a cleaning anyway(today).

 

[Ruskin_Roost]

Are they preening those areas excessively? I don't know about parasites, but your description does seem to fit in the category and it doesn't look like pysical wound from pecking. Beddings(sawdust, straws, hays, dirt, etc) are typical sources of contamination. I would clean and sterilize everything inthe cage, spray some anti bugs/medicine just in case, and give chicks a large bowl of sand to dust bath. Welcome to the forum by the way!

Is it okay to give week-old chicks a dust bath? I think this would make my five day chicks very happy

 

[Fenrisulfr]

I know that some of our breeders use sand as bedding for chicks, but I would not do it before they are at least 10 days old.

Sometimes it happens, that very young chicks eating bedding which is as small as the crumbles. But the bedding has has no nutrition, so they die starving with full stomach. And if one is starting doing this silly thing, the others will probably follow.

They have no mother hen, teaching them what is eatable and what isn't.

This is maybe over cautious, but I prefer to eleminate all risks.

 

[Ruskin_Roost]

I know that some of our breeders use sand as bedding for chicks, but I would not do it before they are at least 10 days old.

Sometimes it happens, that very young chicks eating bedding which is as small as the crumbles. But the bedding has has no nutrition, so they die starving with full stomach. And if one is starting doing this silly thing, the others will probably follow.

They have no mother hen, teaching them what is eatable and what isn't.

This is maybe over cautious, but I prefer to eleminate all risks.

That is a really good point. I don’t know how to teach them what to eat and what not, other than to just show them where the food is and scratch it with my finger. I use pine shavings and I see them digging around in it more and more, sometimes making a hole that the group will sleep in together. I will have to research using sand as a bedding- it would be more economic for me if I could use a course sand in their bedding section, since I live on a river! But I was planning on using the pine shavings through adulthood. So many things to learn! That is nice to have people in your community to compare to. No one I know has quail!