So you finally received your coturnix quail chicks in the mail. This is a very exciting moment, however remember that your coturnix quail chicks have had a long journey and need specific care once they arrive. They may be dehydrated, hungry, and exhausted from their journey.
Quail chicks require four primary things to thrive: Water, Food, Heat and clean Space.
Hydration is the first priority for your quail chicks
Since we are talking about shipped coturnix quail chicks, we must focus on hydration first. Your chicks will be thirsty and proper hydration is key for the chicks to regulate their temperature.
Although the chicks may be hungry and focused on food, our most immediate task is to ensure they are properly hydrated. Resist the urge to give your chicks feed when you receive them. The food can further dehydrate them and the chicks will often focus on eating, rather than drinking.
Provide your coturnix quail chicks with room temperature water for the first 6 hours after they arrive. This will ensure that they are able to properly hydrate, prior to eating. Adding electrolyte mix to their water for 1-2 days will help quail chicks hydrate quickly. This also provides them with extra energy they need to recover from the journey.
If you haven’t purchased a pre-mixed electrolyte mix, you can create your own with common household items.
- 1 cup water
- 2 teaspoons molasses OR 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
Dip each chicks beak into the water when placing them into your heated brooder. This will help the chicks locate the water.
It will also give them a taste of what they need. Your chicks should immediately start drinking water after you dip their beak. If they do not continue drinking on their own, dip their beak in the water again to encourage them.
When selecting a waterer for your quail chicks, remember that quail need to stay warm and dry. Your quail waterer should have small openings that will not allow quail chicks to get wet or drown in the water. If your waterer has larger openings, you can fill the space with marbles. This will enable quail to access the water, but not get into it.
Your quail chicks need heat
Your quail babies will require a heat source until they are fully feathered. Coturnix Quail chicks reach full feathering at 3 weeks. They can survive in most climates without a heat source, once they are feathered.
Quail chicks require a heat source of approximately 95F degrees for the first week of their life. Each week after that, the heat should be lowered by approximately 5F degrees, until the chicks are fully feathered.
Chicks need enough space to regulate their temperature. If they are too hot, they can move away from the heat source. If they are cold, they can move closer to the heat source.
Monitor your chicks regularly to ensure the proper temperature. Your chicks should be spread throughout the space in both the warmer and colder areas. They should be moving back and forth, closer and further from the heat source.
If most of your chicks are huddling up under the heat source, the temperature is probably too low for them. If most of your chicks are staying away from the heat source, it may be too hot.
Keep this in mind when determining the placement of food and water. Chicks may not move to their food or water if it makes them too hot or too cold. This results in them not getting the sustenance they need.
Feed for you jumbo coturnix quail chicks
Your young chicks will need a high protein feed during their growth phase, especially when they are younger. The Jumbo Coturnix Quail chicks will grow rapidly, so it is important to make sure they have the right nutrition to meet their speedy development. Feed your coturnix chicks a gamebird or turkey starter feed with at least 28% protein.
Feed availability with proper nutritional requirements for Coturnix quail varies by location. We won’t get into the weeds about all the specific nutritional requirements right now. Just remember that you need a Gamebird or Turkey Starter feed with a protein content of 28-30%. The more protein, the better in the early years of a Jumbo Coturnix.
A starter feed will typically be ground small enough for your chicks to easily consume it. If you are worried that your chicks are having difficulty eating the feed, you can make it easier for them. Grind the feed into smaller pieces for the first few days.
Clean Brooder Space
Your newly arrived quail chicks will need plenty of space to move around without running over each other and a method of removing their waste from the brooder.
Young quail chicks are full of energy and will zoom around your brooder all day long. Ensure you have enough space for them to move throughout the brooder without injuring one another. They also need enough room to thermoregulate by moving further from and closer to the heat source.
Traditional style box/tote incubators require bedding, such as wood chips, sawdust, or paper towels, to catch the manure. This bedding must be changed out regularly to remove their waste from their living space.
Ongoing Monitoring of your chicks
There you have it, the 4 essential to raise happy and healthy shipped quail chicks. Raising coturnix quail chicks is not difficult. However, preparation, attention to detail and ongoing monitoring are essential. Without these, the chicks will not thrive.
Provide water to your chicks when they arrive. Keep clean water available at all times. Monitor the chicks to make sure they all have access to the water.
Stay on top of checking the temperature in your quail incubator and adjust it down by 5°F each week, or as necessary depending on the response of your quail.
Feed a Gamebird starter feed that has a minimum of 24% protein, keep their feeders clean and filled, and ensure that all quail chicks are eating regularly.
Ensure adequate space for the amount of chicks in your brooder and keep your brooder clean to your quail chicks healthy.