My organic Coturnix quail with her own chicks. Mi codorniz y polluelos. Ma caille et ses poussins

Update on my sitting quail - just as I thought things were going so well, it was all change but actually for the better. Blog: holistic-hen.blogspot.fr/2015/...
Justo cuando pensaba que las cosas iban tan bien, era todo cambio, pero en realidad para mejor. Blog:holistic-hen.blogspot.fr/2015/...
Tout comme je pensais que les choses allaient si bien, tout a changé, mais en réalité pour le mieux. Blog: holistic-hen.blogspot.fr/2015/...

[@MissNebulosity]

OMG WHEN THE BABIES poked their heads out of mom's wing, MY HEART MELTED

[@Pavlovafowl]

I know it was such a magical moment for me too. I also had no idea a quail carried her babies about like that. Something I couldn't film because she was always too quick for me, was that when she carried them towards some food, she actually shook herself and shook them all out of her feathers as if to say 'come on dinner time!' I'm hoping to get chicks again this Spring so fingers crossed! All the very best and thanks for your lovely comment, Sue

[@tropicallivingoverseas5202]

Mama is making a whole new sound just for the chicks. Mine have never made that noise as all eggs are incubated. Sounds a little bit like when I give them a new sand bath. Very lovely!

[@Pavlovafowl]

Hi Dany and thanks for your comments, they are appreciated. I am always amazed at the sounds quail and chickens make. I am just about to make another film showing another of my quail going through the stages of broodiness as she accepts some new quail chicks, she make sounds I have never heard before! I think there is a whole area of bird speak and emotions that we humans are only just finding out about and it interests me greatly. Sand bathing is, from observation, an activity that is very complex, something they obviously enjoy because it helps get rid of parasites and feather debris but also it is a very social behaviour too. If you look at this film, kzbin.info/www/bejne/nKDSZn15dtmibMk right at the end it shows a quail chick I got from a friend and how it copies its new mother hen and takes a dust bath with her. It seems to me, to be a final acceptance of the hen as its mother. So much to observe and learn and as you write, it is a very lovely experience to watch happy quail! All the very best from Normandie, Sue

[@ucantseeme33]

Ginger is a great mother and snow queen a great hatcher. Loved your rubber stamp at the end (wink).

[@Pavlovafowl]

Pamela M Hi there Pamela, Ginger is a star and with Snow Queen makes a great combination brooder, hatcher and raiser! So happy you liked the credits! ;-) All the best, Sue

[@rebeccajohnson1368]

These are veryprecious footage. Thank you forsharing

[@Pavlovafowl]

Hi Rebecca, Thank you for your lovely comment, I do appreciate it and you are so welcome! All the very best from Normandie, Sue xx

[@dave1212ish]

Amazing how well she took to the chicks. I bet the chicks were relieved to be speaking quail with someone who understood them lol

[@Pavlovafowl]

dave1212ish She just loved them! Also she knows what quail really like to eat, whereas the hen has certain things she thinks they should eat. I had a really funny situation where my quail chicks wouldn't eat something and the hen kept reoffering it. In the end the chicks took it and hid it around the back of the hen house, I guess they didn't want to offend her! All the very best, Sue

[@marlizerobberts742]

reminds me of our quail girl we had, her name was Precious, hatched two eggs, she was such a great bird, died of old age in the end but hopefully will get some quails again in the near future, its amazing what awesome creatures they are, such a joy!!

[@Pavlovafowl]

Hi Marlize, they are such wonderful birds and I do hope you get some more. They so often get such a bad deal from humans, here in France the average life expectancy for caged quail is six months! It is so great to hear from someone who keep them well. All the very best fro Normandie, Sue

[@dirtpatcheaven]

Congratulations! I am so inspired...and I think your gentle treatment of the little birds is what is helping them be such good mamas.

[@Pavlovafowl]

dirtpatcheaven Aaww thanks! I am so happy that Ginger turned out to be such a good mama, it made me quite emotional to see the way she accepted the chicks, she immediately began to scratch a nest 'scrape' out in the straw and hay in the box - it was a magnificent moment! All the very best, Sue

[@ceekees]

Stunning footage. Love it. My hen didn't like her baby quails too much either. I let her and he hen chick out every morning to free range and then pop her back with the quails at night:)

[@Pavlovafowl]

ceekees Hi there, Thanks! This is the first time it has happened to me with a hen really not liking quail but I gave Snow Queen a hen chick that hatched unexpectedly from an abandoned egg under 5 serial broodies! She didn't like the chick either! So my guess is she's just at the young hen - I-like-sitting stage. I think a combination between hen and quail is possibly the best option in our climate because keeping them warm at night is so important and I do not think quail mothers normally stay very long attached to the chick. I'm documenting this and will write it up, as it could be of use to people trying for as natural a upbringing as possible. I am so happy your hatch is working out! This is all new ground and so many people write negative stuff about hens and quail sitting and hatching quail and we both know it can be done and how well quail thrive with a real Mummy! All the very best, Sue

[@goatgirl61]

That is the sweetest thing I've seen all day ♡

[@Pavlovafowl]

goatgirl61 Aaww thanks! This was a dream of mine so I am so pleased. All the very best, Sue

[@quailjailss]

Amazing video!! The sounds she makes...it reminds me of a peafowl hen! That is so interesting... thank you so much for sharing.

[@Pavlovafowl]

quailjailss Thanks! That is a good comparison, the vocal ranges were quite amazing, I've not been able to include all in the video, as it would generally just have shown Ginger eating lettuce but making different sounds! It was also obvious that she could make two different sounds at the same time, which was pretty incredible, I'm still not sure how she did it! So happy you enjoyed it and all the very best, Sue

[@RAFAELGARCIA-cy4fc]

Waow! That's so nice. I was under the impression that these type of quails didn't go broody.

[@Pavlovafowl]

Hi Rafael Thanks! I appreciate your comments. You are so right, they don't go broody that often but I've found if you provide them with a wild-ish environment and what would be their natural diet, particularly wild invertebrates, they seem to find their lost instincts. I don't know if you are aware of this but Coturnix were originally raised as song birds and this aspect has been lost too, so my next challenge is to try and see if they can find their voices! All the very best from sunny Normandie, Sue

[@NewEnglandgardening]

Maybe because it was in a box with nothing to compare it to but that quail seemed as big as a chicken. Are there breeds that a larger than others?

[@Pavlovafowl]

NewEnglandgardening Hi, If you go on to my article here holistic-hen.blogspot.fr/2012/03/hatching-and-raising-quail-organically.html#.VXAs6VKGPet you will see a picture with my Ardenner Bantam Polly and Goldie, a quail similar in size to Ginger. It is the third photograph in the article and Goldie is behind the compost bag, she has just had a run in with Polly because she got too near the chick! That said, Ginger is a very sleek quail and she is getting more invertebrate than usual due to sharing the chicks food and not having to compete with my other adult quail. You have to watch coturnix, as they can put on weight but as Ginger has just started to lay, she obviously does not have that problem. There are many breeds of what are known as Old World and New World Quail and they do vary in size. There are also the Texas A&M Jumbo coturnix which are quite a bit bigger. Hope this helps. All the very best, Sue

[@funwithFred]

I just love, love your channel. So lovely to look at, and so much interesting and useful information. Thank you so much.

[@Pavlovafowl]

funwithFred Hi Fred, Thanks so much for your kind comments, I do appreciate them. All the very best from sunny Normandie, Pavlovafowl aka Sue

[@BobizKollection]

Aww this video brought some memories back , my grandma had chickens, and yes you are right they need someone who they can trust because whenever I used to go in that special room where my grandma used to keep her chiks ,OMG she used to be really angry I used to get scared lmao never knew that chickens were so scary 😌, you are a hardworker 👏👏

[@Pavlovafowl]

+Bobiz Kollection Hi and thanks for your lovely comment. I have a photo of my great grandmother keeping chickens, so I'm guessing it is in our blood. Hope you get some of your own one day. All the very best, Pavlovafowl aka Sue

[@noorizzudinmohdnoor305]

I love to see ur house environment.. And innever saw quail hatching their own egg before...

[@Pavlovafowl]

Thank you for your lovely comment! It is a great experience to see and hear a mother quail with her chicks. It's hard work starting them with a mother hen, as you can imagine the size difference can cause some real problems but if you can get through that then those chicks can and will go on to raise their own, if you provide a good environment and a natural food source. The food is really important, as it not only involves them actively hunting for invertebrates and thus relearning foraging skills but the nutrients contained therein have an amazing effect upon their nervous system health. With a good wild protein-based diet, they are well-balanced, stress-free and able to spend time pairing off, nesting and bringing up chicks. Good luck, if you have your own quail and all the very best from Normandie, Sue

[@noorizzudinmohdnoor305]

Thank u.. For replying my comment.. I try my best like u told me...

[@nataliem.campbell6678]

So very precious! :)

[@carolleenkelmann4751]

So, I've found Ginger and ?her chicks. It all got a bit complicated, didn't it. No wonder I got confused as I have seen this video but it might have been very early after the discovery of this Quail Vlog about a week ago, now.... before I became interested in details and confused and side-tracked by the surplus of videos and printed documentation, getting all tied up with the time-lapses. But, now at least I sort of know about Ginger and her chicks, but there were not 6 that hatched. Lucky, or rather, good management on your part that there any at all.

[@SS-vp6yd]

Can you share how you collect eggs from your free range quail? I greatly enjoy your channel.

[@Pavlovafowl]

Shannon Shaughnessy Hi Shannon Thanks! I am always out with them when they free range as, we do have predator problems. That said, some years ago I used to have a quail who was very tame and did a lot of free ranging at the front of the house in the farm lane and my neighbour actually found several of her eggs in her flower bed! In the greenhouse which is quite large and also now full of plants, I do tend to find my quail lay clutches in designated places, usually under specific plants like the rosemary bush but also just recently in the little house they sleep in at night. I am planning to extend the quail area so they eggs will be more difficult to find but am designing some closeable nestboxes, which will be camouflaged with plants and sticks, so I will be making a film on that. This is to overcome the real problem this year with my quail sitting because the greenhouse is not totally predator proof and I was really worried about her sitting under the rosemary bush overnight. All the very best and hope this answers your question but do get back to me if you have any more queries, Pavlovafowl aka Sue

[@migdaliarodriguez1335]

Can you make a video putting the quail and that small hen side by side i wanna see the difference in size

[@joecarman7356]

I like the last bit it is well cool

[@Pavlovafowl]

themustacheman Thanks! I thought the stamp and quill pen suited the channel perfectly. It is a feather/quill from one of my Polish roosters too - so all the better! Best wishes from Normandie, Sue

[@mothergoose6087]

Such cute mamma and babies. What would they ever do with sprouts?

[@Pavlovafowl]

Thanks for your comments, appreciated and in answer to your question, quail love sprouts, it's the only grain I feed them, as mine are on a plant and wild invertebrate protein-based diet rather than a grain one. All the very best, Pavlovafowl aka Sue

[@dobe762]

Hi Sue, really nice video, I'm hoping my broody silkies are going to bring out some grey partridge eggs. I don't seem to have the magic touch you do though!

[@Pavlovafowl]

dobe762 Hi Stephen Thanks!. Hope everything is going well. I was born on a part-dairy part-poultry farm in the Year of the Rooster, so perhaps that helps! Good luck with the partridge eggs, Silkies are really good mothers, I've only ever had a Silkie cross but she was a fantastic parent! All the very best, Sue

[@leninromero1707]

Esta chido

[@leninromero1707]

Chido😊

[@Pavlovafowl]

¡Gracias y mis mejores deseos de Francia! Pavlovafowl tcc Sue

[@myminifarm5700]

Amazing.

[@CreekValleyCritters]

What a great little mom :) She looks so super healthy, way better than my quail boy Atticus. I was wondering if you could give me some advice.....I keep Atticus in the house running free. I live in Northern Canada where it is too cold half the year and too many predators the other half to let him go outside. If he were yours and you had to keep him as an indoor pet, what would you feed him ? What sort of dust bath would you have available for him ? Anything else you could suggest that would keep him healthier and happier ? Thanks

[@CreekValleyCritters]

***** Thanks, this will help me work towards taking better care of him......

[@Pavlovafowl]

CreekValleyCritters Hi there, Thanks! What Atticus could be lacking in is D3 from direct UVB sunlight. It is created from the action of the sun on the preen oil, which is then, according to the minimum research done on the subject, either absorbed through the legs or eaten directly off the feathers. He needs quality fats (eggs are a really good suggestion from +Ebonglade!) because there is a precursor molecule involved in the process, namely 7-dehydrocholesterol. This would be even more crucial if Atticus were female as, D3 is involved in the correct placing of calcium for egg production but even so, you want calcium to go to his bones! Good quality protein in the form of invertebrates is also essential and they also contain most of the B complex vitamins, which I find crucial for quail as their metabolism is so much speedier than most other poultry. Sadly commercial invertebrates are not as well fed and thus not as nutritious as home-grown. Sowbugs aka woodlice from old dead tree bark or anywhere there is rotting plant matter - a compost heap is good - a quail's favourite high protein snack! I would get him outside as much as possible when the weather is good (short shadow sunlight when UVB is at a maximum) even if it is only for 20 mins, sitting on your knee. In the Winter you could also give him raw organic butter that has some D3. Magnesium is also involved in the equation and you can get than into him transdermally - buy some magnesium salts and make it up with mineral water into a spray - a quick spritz under the wing now and again would be good. However, you can also feed him dark leafy greens for magnesium and this will give him B9 folate as well, another of the highly important B complex vitamins. If you really can not get him outside then set up and enclosed area, I use a big cardboard box and put him in it in front of an open window so the sun shines in but he isn't in a draft - I do this for my very young quail chicks. You could also make this into a dust bath area. I would just bring in some soil from your garden, quail need so many micro nutrients they can find in soil. He may also need some crushed oyster shell, obviously not as much as a laying quail! Above all if he is imprinted on you and I am sure he is, you can train him to stay with you when you garden, so you can get him out with you this way and avoid predators. Ebonlglade's tractor idea is good too and also I know people put quail in raised flower beds, which they wire over to protect from predators. For more info try my blog holistic-hen.blogspot.com I have several posts on quail in particular look at my sprouted grain article as I do supplement with organic triticale, although I am not fond of giving grain to birds, sometimes I can not find enough wild protein! Quail need a lot of greenery too, so make provision for that. Hope this helps. All the very best and a big hug for Atticus, Sue

[@CreekValleyCritters]

Pavlovafowl Thanks for all this wonderful information. I have kept quails before but of a different species. My two male bob white quail lived as house pets for seven years each, which is very good, but they looked awfully scruffy the whole time. Atticus is happy and active but also very scruffy looking. I will get onto changing things for him and hopefully end up with a beautiful boy like your quails, although being outside is a tricky one. Atticus is not imprinted although he is tame. Judging by his behavior at windows, I think if I let him free outside he would be off, searching for females, and become lost very quickly. Outside, unsupervised pens are tricky in a land with large free roaming neighborhood dogs, bears and wolves. Living so far north the sun barely gets above the horizon every day in winter. Is there a supplement I can give him, say a vitamin D3 powder to sprinkle on his food ? I take vitamin D pills in winter for the same reason, lack of sunlight.

[@Pavlovafowl]

CreekValleyCritters Hi there, my, you make our predators here in France look like very small potatoes! My sister in Scotland has lynx, mink, pine martens and real wild cats, so she has such difficulties too! I would go for a transdermal D3 spray, I think this will be more effective for Artticus - you might even think about it for yourself too - again my sister and parents use this in Scotland, as they have similar problems. The feathering will improve with methionine, so an organic hen's egg or whatever wild arthropods (mosquitos ?) you can trap. Really good luck and big hug to Atticus - seven years is absolutely amazing, Flopsy my English White was 5 when she was eaten by a rat - and she was still laying - I was so sad and angry. What about a girl(quail) friend for Atticus! Sue

[@CreekValleyCritters]

Pavlovafowl Thanks for the info, I will see if I can get hold of the spray.......there is a quail girl at the pet store but according to them, Atticus is too hard on the girls and cannot safely live with them without stressing them too much.

[@newsofworld5075]

How she sat On eggs

[@Pavlovafowl]

There is a more detailed written article here that explains the whole process: holistic-hen.blogspot.com/2016/07/tips-and-strategies-for-hatching-and.html#.XYKSzVcv6V5 All the very best from Normandie, Sue

[@randomblog218]

Do they usually go broody iam hoping mine will hatch some

[@Pavlovafowl]

Hi there, yes they will but you need to provide a quail 'paleo' diet and sympathetic environment. I have found that without essential B vitamins and amino acids, such as methionine, found in abundance in wild protein, quail get fractious and do not function mentally as well as they should, hence the prevalence for nervous behaviour in most domestic quail. Once they are at ease both male and female exhibit totally different behaviour, mine are calm, they pair off and become monogamous at least for the breeding season. They also start to form nests and guard the nesting site. Both are involved in this, for example the female needs the male call to trigger nesting behaviour and the male does the nest guarding and sometimes chooses the nesting site. I have written extensively on this on my blog if you want to take a look: holistic-hen.blogspot.fr/2016/07/tips-and-strategies-for-hatching-and.html#.WBxol7VVK1F Please do ask either here or on the blog if you have any more questions. All the very best, Pavlovafowl aka Sue

[@MrJrlilman]

I am very interested in buying quail to raise as pets but I still need to learn more about them. Could you please make a video on the basics of what people need to know about quail, how to keep them healthy organically, how to keep a good diet for them, and what exactly to feed them?

[@Pavlovafowl]

Jesse Rodriguez Hi there. I have made quite a few videos already right back to basics and they are supported by my blogs. So, if you want to take a look at my articles on Holistic Hen holistic-hen.blogspot.fr/2012/03/getting-started-with-organic-coturnix.html#.VZFzR-SlilN and then follow through to the other articles and then let me know exactly what you want, I will be most happy to make a video. I have several still to do in the Quail Diaries series on KZbin - including one on food deficiencies in purchased quail/quail eggs when converting them to an organic and cage free lifestyle. I'll try and get that out soon. So please do get back and tell me what is missing. All the very best, Sue

[@MrJrlilman]

Pavlovafowl I think I just need to look through your blogs, I see you have plenty of info I need to check out. I think that would be enough. Thank you for the quick reply and for the help, really appreciate it!

[@Pavlovafowl]

Jesse Rodriguez OK but there is no problem with me making a specific film. I am just going to write a blog post with more details of how we cured hay fever and eczema with quail eggs, for example, many people have asked me for this. See what you think and get back to me if you need more info. All the very best, Sue

[@JonasX650]

How do u have such a successful egg hatching farm

[@Pavlovafowl]

JonasX 650 It's all in the food and also with my hens I am now in the 3rd generation of keeping them in an organic forest garden, which cuts out a lot of stress. With the quail I got the compost bins set up in their greenhouse, so they have a constant supply of wild invertebrate protein. Again the amino acids in this sort of protein, particularly methionine make for minimum stress. Hope this helps

[@JonasX650]

So like compost stuff would help them make chicks easy

[@RusticByNature]

Cute

[@Pavlovafowl]

Rustic By Nature Thanks for dropping by. All the very best, Sue

[@rinokaz]

How do you eat them after all of that?

[@Pavlovafowl]

Hi there - we don't, we eat the eggs! All the very best from Normandie, Pavlovafowl aka Sue

[@solangeisabellopezintriago2153]

Bacano

[@Pavlovafowl]

¡Gracias! Mejores deseos de Normandía, Pavlovafowl tcc Sue

[@karolruiz1039]

awwww

[@Pavlovafowl]

Thanks! I have a new Mama quail, this year and will be posting a film shortly. They make wonderful, caring mothers and the bond with the chicks, even though they can look after themselves almost from hatch, is incredibly strong. All the very best, Pavlovafowl aka Sue

[@ImASurvivorNThriver]

VERY NICE... :-)

[@Pavlovafowl]

imasurvivornthriver Hi there, Thanks! So happy you liked it. All the very best, Sue

[@neila.3497]

Funny how the bantam didnt like the Quail chicks ... they are so much like chickens. I successfully hatched Jap Quail under pigeons ... although of course the pigeons didn't mother the baby quail. I rounded them up and put them in a large fish tank and raised them to full size.

[@chrislecky710]

You are attempting to mitigate the issues we created whilst the issues still exist.. that's the issue...Your effort is not scaled up enough to have the level of impact you require.. Maybe group together with other quail owners and swap eggs from some of the most successful hens amount the crowd, in that way your scaling up enough to capitalize on those birds that are at least making some effort even if they aren't 100% successful a progression is possible over an extended time frame by swapping experience strategies and DNA..

[@Pavlovafowl]

Yours is an interesting argument. My impact, if any, is not in physical quail but in the philosophy that quail can return to their natural instincts given the best possible environment and food. Even in the area where I live, I'm now seeing people keeping uncaged quail because they have seen mine. When I first came here a neighbour told me in all seriousness that: 'quail can not touch the ground because they get sick from contact with the earth.' My belief is that any quail has within it the ability to return to its 'wild' state, I just share how I help it along. All the very best, Sue