Quail update June 2014: Turns out quail hate Tucson summers. They stopped laying eggs two weeks ago when the temperature went over 95. All of the information I had been reading warned about quail being too cold. Can quail survive in snow? Can quail survive in an unheated garage in Minnesota over winter? Not really helpful for me. I guess not many people keep quail outside in hot places.
I turned their cage in to a quail spa. Added a wet sand bath, gravel bottomed wading pool, daily treats of lettuce and watermelon. They were still panting from the heat. So, I pushed their cage up to the window which is open a few inches and put a blanket on the other sides of the cage to capture the cool air. No more panting, just happy quail noises. Now I just need some soothing quail music, a quail yoga instructor, some aroma therapy, and maybe they will start laying again.
My plans to secure the 4'x4' aviary cage and put the quail on the ground have been put on hold. I think the only way that would work is if I hooked up a misting system for the hot dry months. That would mean using more water. This quail experiment has been very educational. If I have quail when I move out to my property, I think I will have to build a deck outside of a window so that they can be inside yet outside at the same time. Open the window and they can share the heating or cooling yet they are outside so clean up is easier and no smells are coming in. I have plenty of time to design quail pens in my head. For now, I am glad that I was able to fix the problem without too much trouble.
5 comments:
i wonder if they know how spoilt they are!!
I don't know anything about quail, but for my chinchilla I have a frozen slate stone thing that I store in the freezer and then I put in his cage on the hot days. I don't know if it would bother them or not. Often he won't lay on it but next to it.
I don't think they do, Lizzie. No eggs yet. Perhaps a little quail dinner for me?
thequiltingdoberman, frozen slate stone, how interesting! How long does it stay cool? Some people were recommending a frozen water jug but I was thinking it would be warm in a couple of ours and I am at work for 9 hours so that isn't going to work.
nice
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