Why Are My Buttons Doing This????

[BirdBoy88]

My button quails all 20 something of them live the spoiled life they get what they want when they want it and then some

But i have been noticing my buttons have been crazy over water lately
i have been having the refill there water jar twice sometimes 3 times a day

so last night i notice there jar was empty again..so i refilled it and place it back in there cage and they all ran to it like they haven't had water in 3 days straight

so i sat down and watch them and i notice that my buttons are drinking to much water even when they are not thirsty

they will drink so much water until they will walk away and spit all there water back up and then walk back to the jar and drink more water then walk away and throw it back up again

why are they doing this????? i have no idea

 

[therealsilkiechick]

sounds like they r dehydrated is there a light on them? is it to hot or to close to them and evaporateing water?

 

[BirdBoy88]

Quote:
Nope...there light is about 4 feet above the cage and it's a fluorescent light bulb that hardly gets hot

 

[monarc23]

that is really weird!?!?! I've noticed mine are drinking more water with it getting cold but nothing like what you are discribing! Mine stop drinking when they've had thier fill. And no puking it back up. Maybe it has something to do with the weather? Though I can't say why yours are being so extreme about it wow! Myquails outside are drinking like crazy too, but no puking there either just drinking until they are satisified.

 

[shelleyd2008]

I would wonder what you are feeding them. Maybe they don't have enough grit, or thier food has a lot of sodium in it?

 

[therealsilkiechick]

wow, that is totally weird.

 

[BirdBoy88]

Quote:
i feed them land mash mix with bird seed and lettuce and once a week mealworms with boiled egg and i cuttle bone i put in there food once a week

 

[BirdBoy88]

i have no clue either... i just look in there cage and once again there water jar is empty

so i am about to refill it

 

[Mrs MIA]

I've not heard of this before, either. If it was me, I would consider changing their feed. Try backing them off to just plain gamebird maintenance feed, and watch them. No treats for a week. Then each week add something back to their diet and observe them. See if you can figure out what it is that's making them do that, because that is not normal.

 

[therealsilkiechick]

hmm... i'm thinking food prob is part of it but mabe not all of it. for 1 if that is iceburg letuce then it is nothing but water and will give them the runs so no nutrision will just run through them. if u give them letuce that is other types it is fine.

i didn't hear no mention of grit if u r feeding them anything other than gamebird they need it.

sounds like to much calcium in their diet also do they lay eggs with chalk looking deposits on them? what is the mix of the mash?

they should be on gamebird feed and soybean meal but the mealworms make up for the protein part so that is fine.

have u checked to see if they r spilling the water? bedding in the water so it flowes out into bedding on outside? no it is not normal. when i have had chicks or adult chickens do that it is usually to heat and them gourging themselves in summer or they do it right after they eat and r picked up. r waterers freezeing? mabe they r gourging before the water freezes that happens too. still thinking.... but only other thing i can think of is them being sick, if can't breathe asperating would do it also causeing it to not be swallowed right.