Quail aviary ground help!

[Quailnewbiee]

Hi! So after hatching eggs, and getting all the ratios right, and making sure none are bullying.. the next problem is aviary floor. Our aviary has clay hard dirt floor. Today I saw flies and mold/fungus in one area. I swept out as much as I could. This is a small area for humans to get my big rake into. I’m curious how does everyone else do it? What tools? How often? My second issue is that at night I have to transfer my quail into the garage due to one of my Roos crowing at 4am. The actual aviary is next to my neighbors window. It was not good. But the cement of the garage floor is getting messed up too! Who knew quail poop so much!?! Please help! Wire flooring is not an option for us. My husband thought of digging up the old dirt and filling the aviary outside with fresh dirt and sand that easier to “clean” also I wanted to throw a couple plants and more of an actual roosting house structure in there. It’s just taking time and money and ideas to get this all right!?? Any helpful tips for cleaning the aviary floor or garage floor is helpful!! I don’t want these little ones getting sick! The pictures show the cakes up poo outside I tried to rake out.. the close up is the fungus etc.. the one has the way we set it up with feed/water and stuff. The garage floor pictures show how quickly they mess on the straw. I don’t have enough straw to replace nightly. Is the cement floor itself just too hard? Thanks for ideas! Oh and anyone know of any quail safe plant for Chicago weather? I would love to spoil these little ones!

 

[raingarden]

Catching the birds every afternoon to move them to the garage sounds like a lot of work for you and a lot of stress for the quail.

 

[Quailnewbiee]

Catching the birds every afternoon to move them to the garage sounds like a lot of work for you and a lot of stress for the quail.

Yes, I would agree. We haven’t figured out an alternative plan yet. We really don’t want to kill the Roos. I know in winter they will be in the garage, but I like them in the fresh air as long as possible. Ideally we would love to move to get more land, but we have to wait a year. They are still laying eggs daily and don’t fight when we move them. In fact they seem happy when I carry them back and forth. They have been handled a lot since they hatched, so they are kinda used to it. But long term something definitely needs to change.

 

[happymrsbass]

I have used an aviary for my quail from the beginning and have used every flooring imaginable! Hands down best floor is wood chips (natural, undyed mulch) about 6-8” deep. Seriously, a small rake or garden weasel once a week to “mix in” the poo and such makes keeping the odor and mold down so easy. It slowly composts and would only need to be changed once or twice a year depending on how many birds you have.
Skip straw or hay and pine shaving and always no cedar shavings. These all create high ammonia messes.
As far as edible plants, anything a chicken can eat, the quail can too. Word of caution before you plant directly into the ground, they will LOVE having any plant and it does enrich their lives HOWEVER, nothing and I truly mean nothing planted will survive the voracious leaf nibbling and root scratching of quail. Lol! I have planted over 20 plants in mine (different years, different seasons), including a small tree… there are currently no live plants in their aviary lol!
A better option is potted plants that trail down or just grow around the aviary and snip off parts for the quail to eat for enrichment.
I have found the quail enjoy fake plants to hide and play under just as much as the live ones… and the fake ones last much much longer. Your aviary looks great with plenty of enrichment… already spoiled in my opinion. Love it!

 

[Quailnewbiee]

I have used an aviary for my quail from the beginning and have used every flooring imaginable! Hands down best floor is wood chips (natural, undyed mulch) about 6-8” deep. Seriously, a small rake or garden weasel once a week to “mix in” the poo and such makes keeping the odor and mold down so easy. It slowly composts and would only need to be changed once or twice a year depending on how many birds you have.
Skip straw or hay and pine shaving and always no cedar shavings. These all create high ammonia messes.
As far as edible plants, anything a chicken can eat, the quail can too. Word of caution before you plant directly into the ground, they will LOVE having any plant and it does enrich their lives HOWEVER, nothing and I truly mean nothing planted will survive the voracious leaf nibbling and root scratching of quail. Lol! I have planted over 20 plants in mine (different years, different seasons), including a small tree… there are currently no live plants in their aviary lol!
A better option is potted plants that trail down or just grow around the aviary and snip off parts for the quail to eat for enrichment.
I have found the quail enjoy fake plants to hide and play under just as much as the live ones… and the fake ones last much much longer. Your aviary looks great with plenty of enrichment… already spoiled in my opinion. Love it!

Thank you soo much! You have given me so many great ideas! I think the wood chips will be our new flooring as that does seem a bit easier. I heard of “Back to Eden” woodchips for gardening.. so this sounds similar. This is something that sounds very doable for us. How do you find natural un dyed mulch? I know our town has a bin of it, but the chips are fairly big. I’m wondering if I can use them for the first 4-5 inches and softer smaller stuff fit the top. I honestly never would have thought of fake plants, but now that you recommend that, it seems so ideal! I just feel like although they are happy, I wanted a bit more greenery and something to allow them to hide.

 

[HillGuy]

When I had my aviary, I would put down a layer of straw and add straw every few days to keep a clean surface on top. After 2 to 4 weeks, depending on weather, I could scrape up a spot and peel it all out like ripping up a carpet. I'd throw it into a garbage bag and carry it over to a compost heap. Worked pretty well. The aviary was 6' X 8' and had 28 or so birds in it.

I moved and am starting over. This time they're on wire. Didn't have it in me to put up another aviary and deal with all those cage rings again.

 

[Quailnewbiee]

Thanks! Maybe that will work for the garage. I hear you about the wire, definitely easier to clean... who knew quail were so much work. I love them, but they definitely take time and energy. Especially in the beginning before you have heard or read a few things! I’m hoping one day I will be an expert! Like anything practice makes perfect. Lol! I’m so thankful for everyone’s advice!