I have two Japanese quail, one lays every day between 2.30 and 4pm...the other has stopped laying. I found one tiny pea sized egg, and a few days later a oddly shaped egg that was very pointy. Both my girls lay very different patterned eggs so I know only one girl is laying, they have the same feed which is a layers mash for quails along side the occasional treat of meal worm and the odd millet spray. They are both very active and happy, is there anything I can do to help the other lay? I have no idea of the age of the birds as I re homed them a year or so ago.
my quail has stopped laying eggs.
- Thread starter twinthink
- Start date
- Messages
- 8,130
- Location
- Hampshire, U.K.
Hi Twinthink and welcome to the forum. Sorry I missed this post, I had a day out yesterday!
Even though you don't know exactly how old the quails actually are, as you say you've had them for a year or so, and they had already been rehomed as adults at that age, they may be getting on a bit by now. I would imagine they have actually done very well, to be still healthy and both of them productive until recently. Obviously they've been very well looked after in your care. I would imagine the normal lifespan for quails is around 2-4 years in captivity, small birds don't have a very long lifespan. I've recently rehomed the last of my quail who were still laying daily at 2.5 years, which I thought was pretty good really.
Like any birds, quails are born with only a certain number of gg cells in their ovaries, and when these are gone because they've laid so many eggs, they have come to the end of their laying life, kind of like the menopause I suppose. They may well go on for a while yet as pets, but if they might be over 3 years old they are definitely of retirement age and may be approaching the limit of their natural lifespan, although healthy and well looked after.
The other, more hopeful possibility is that the one who has stopped laying is just taking a break in order to moult her feathers and grow new ones. Birds aren't machines, and when moulting and replacing feathers they can't lay eggs at the same time because growing all the new feathers takes a lot of resources from their bodies which would normally be used in egg production. Have they moulted since you got them? This is about the time of year when most poultry goes through an annual moult, and then gets nice fresh feathers ready for the winter ahead if they lived in the wild. Can you see any feathers in their cage?
There might possibly be other reasons but with such small birds it's very hard to diagnose any health problems. If she is eating and drinking and appears active and interested in life, she is probably fine.
Even though you don't know exactly how old the quails actually are, as you say you've had them for a year or so, and they had already been rehomed as adults at that age, they may be getting on a bit by now. I would imagine they have actually done very well, to be still healthy and both of them productive until recently. Obviously they've been very well looked after in your care. I would imagine the normal lifespan for quails is around 2-4 years in captivity, small birds don't have a very long lifespan. I've recently rehomed the last of my quail who were still laying daily at 2.5 years, which I thought was pretty good really.
Like any birds, quails are born with only a certain number of gg cells in their ovaries, and when these are gone because they've laid so many eggs, they have come to the end of their laying life, kind of like the menopause I suppose. They may well go on for a while yet as pets, but if they might be over 3 years old they are definitely of retirement age and may be approaching the limit of their natural lifespan, although healthy and well looked after.
The other, more hopeful possibility is that the one who has stopped laying is just taking a break in order to moult her feathers and grow new ones. Birds aren't machines, and when moulting and replacing feathers they can't lay eggs at the same time because growing all the new feathers takes a lot of resources from their bodies which would normally be used in egg production. Have they moulted since you got them? This is about the time of year when most poultry goes through an annual moult, and then gets nice fresh feathers ready for the winter ahead if they lived in the wild. Can you see any feathers in their cage?
There might possibly be other reasons but with such small birds it's very hard to diagnose any health problems. If she is eating and drinking and appears active and interested in life, she is probably fine.
thanks for your reply.....I haven not noticed them moult much but they do have a summer look and a winter look that is slightly different. They are both very happy and healthy girls and I enjoy their antics very much so egg production was just a bonus for me . They were part of a group of 4, one died in her sleep 6 months ago and the other was rather horrifically attacked and eaten by a rat! which I caught in a trap and dispatched! the aviary they are in has been upgraded and they are now safe and happy on grass and love a good shrub to hide under, they have made themselves a little nest bowl in the grass and lay in there. Its lovely to see. thanks again x