Can Quail Eat Garlic?

[SkyFree]

I ordered a clutch of 25 Jumbo Wisconsin Bobwhite Quail eggs, which have been sitting under three mini bantam hens for almost two weeks (I already researched the risks associated with trying to hatch quail under chickens and we've still decided to go ahead with it. So far they're doing fine--the other night when candling I even got to see one of the quail moving around inside the egg!). My question is this, when the little peeps finally hatch, can they have fresh garlic? Last year when we bought our chicken peeps one of them got pneumonia. With some research I found out chopped/crushed raw garlic in their water can cure the sick chick and help keep the others healthy. Even though the chick still died, we continued giving our other peeps the garlic water until adulthood, and even now occasionally give them the treat (they really seem to like it!)
So I was just wondering if the quail can have garlic too, just as an extra booster for the little guys. I can't seem to find any info about it, every time I search for garlic and quail google gives me recipes thanks in advance!

 

[geniash]

I do not intend to sound rude or disrespectful. It sounds like you researched the risks of raising quails with chickens and now you are asking if fresh garlic can be used as a medicine to cure quail sickness/disease? You are on a path of success.

 

[rachier8ch]

Sky, correct in that it is generally recommended against mixing quail and chickens because of the diseases that chickens carry, even if not manifested, and that can then be fatally passed to the quail. That being said, in all of my reading in BYC, those who do want to hatch quail naturally have reported successful hatching under bantams. I don't know of their health successes after hatching, however, especially as people generally don't like to report failure when they go against the overwhelming recommendation.

That being said, while I haven't heard of anyone using garlic as a bird supplement, a lot of people do put raw apple cider vinegar in their birds water. Some do it 24/7, others for only one week per month. You can search entire threads and make your decision if you go that route. The ACV helps keep a healthy crop and digestive system, which is the base point of all health. Be sure to get the raw ACV and with "the mother." You can generally find it it a health food store, or even some chain markets.

Different people recommend different strengths. It seems that 1TB per gallon is the main consensus. I read a very good research article linked to in one of the threads about using the amount of ACV needed to get the pH of the ACV water to 4.0. Since water pH varies so widely, a 4.0 goal is what made the most sense to me.

Please do let us know how it goes. I'm not game to try the risk of mixing my quail with chickens, but I wish you the best.

 

[BobDBirdDog]

Yeah but their breath stinks afterwards.

 

[lightchick]

Garlic would be very good for them! I'd love to hear how your hatch goes....I hatched 4 quail chicks last year with a broody Silkie. She raise them to adulthood and everything!

 

[rita2paul]

many years ago when i first started keeping chickens, i put some quail eggs under my silkie she hatched them with no problem, but i did take them away once hatched as the other chickens were a little bit to interested in them, they lived many years in there own pen. i didn't have an incubator in those days and it seemed the only option at the time. but as stated by many people the chickens can carry disease which can be passed on, but at the time when i did it, we did not have internet, which gives you so much knowledge. but good luck with the hatching, but i wouldn't keep them together.

 

[SkyFree]

Sky, correct in that it is generally recommended against mixing quail and chickens because of the diseases that chickens carry, even if not manifested, and that can then be fatally passed to the quail. That being said, in all of my reading in BYC, those who do want to hatch quail naturally have reported successful hatching under bantams. I don't know of their health successes after hatching, however, especially as people generally don't like to report failure when they go against the overwhelming recommendation...

Hey guys! Sorry it took forever to get back to this thread. In the spirit of being honest so other people can use the information, I've come to report both success and failure.

Out of our 25 jumbo Wisconsin bobwhite quail eggs 15 hatched. Unfortunately, the night I found them hatching I discovered it by three little dead ones out of the nest. I don't know if the bantams pecked them to death, squashed them, or if it was because three hens sharing the same nest made the girls clumsy.

Immediately I removed all the chicks and eggs to the incubator inside. One more chick died in the incubator, visibly weaker than the others. I think it got pulled from its egg too early while sitting under the chickens (another reason I say the three sharing the nest must have made them clumsy). I was certainly heartbroken and felt guilty by the deaths of the four, since I knew simply incubating them inside could have prevented the whole thing. The 11 others hatched healthy though.

Determined not to have any other mortalities and knowing many quail chicks die in the first few days from starvation/dehydration, I spent many hours teaching them individually where the food and water was. Dripping water from a syringe into their water dish works like a charm btw! The little chicks dart over to "eat" the wiggly droplets. From there you ween them to drink from the dish the water drips into. After 3-5 days, they were actively eating/drinking by themselves.

I started giving them minced garlic in their water when they were about 2 weeks old to prepare for moving outside with the chicken (only one remained after one was found dead in the yard and the other disappeared). They went outside around 3 weeks (near fully feathered and able to fly well already). I kept then on garlic water for several months. They now drink regular water and get along with the bantam just fine.

We did loose one quail to a mysterious illness(?). One day she was fine, the next couple days she was all puffed out and weak (couldn't hop on even a small log while the others could easily leap to the tallest), and the next day we found her dead. I'd started giving them garlic water again on the second day of her being sick, and though she didn't make it none of the others ever got sick. I really don't know what killed her. It certainly could've been something picked up from the chicken, or something she ate, or something else all together. I just don't know.

Our 10 remaining quail are all beautiful adults now. They coo and sing and talk to you, I love them Theyre about 7 months old, still live with the bantam hen, I haven't given them garlic water since a couple months after the one adolescent died, and the rest all appear healthy. My conclusions come to this: never let 3 bantams hatch a single nest of fragile bobwhite chicks. Secondly, yes quail can eat garlic, but there's not enough evidence in my experience to determine if it prevents illness.

Just because of that experience I doubt I'll ever hatch quail under bantams again, though not saying a SINGLE bantam couldn't do the job (as many people have seen before with various success). From now on I'm probably gonna incubate indoors or stick eggs under a broody bobwhite hen (if I can get them to go broody of course). Hope this helps anyone looking for info on the topic. Good luck!

 

[JaeG]

I had an OEGB hatch Japanese quail for me. She took care of them until they didn't really need her at 3 weeks old. I've also had a Booted bantam hatch them but I removed them as there were just too many that time around. Both had previously raised chicken chicks so they knew what they were doing.

My bantams and Japanese quail now co-exists quite happily. That being said I'm in New Zealand where we don't have Coryza, which is supposed to be the biggest threat to quail from chickens.

 

[Jacquie Button]

I wish I could get my society finch to hatch a couple of my button quail eggs!