[poultrypeople]

hi , i was wondering could i put sand at the bottom of my 2 floor quail house. the birds would be walking on it so would it be harmful to them.also there nesting area has straw and wood chip bedding ( on top floor ) .

[daisy1990]

it wouldn't be harmful, we have put a bowl of sand in for them to dust bathe.  It is however easy for them to kick out and not as easy as hemcore to clean.  It can also be damp and cold in winter

[Lewjam]

I dont thik sand is harmfull.

Some might say it does tend to absorb water though so can lead to boggyness..

[Sassy]

They are likely to eat the sand so the wrong sort may harm them - not sure about this. I use dust extracted shavings on the floor - smell nice and have a slight disenfectant effect if pine.

By the way quail don't nest

[daisy1990]

Well Sassy depends on your definition of nesting I suppose!  Ours dont build a nest but they do go in the cat litter tray which we fill with hemcore for them, they shuffle around in it (as  a hen would whilst dust bathing) they then circle around and make a dent and settle down for the night (as a dog does when it circles around on a dog bed to fluff up the edges and make a nice dip in the middle).  This may not technically be nesting but if you google quail nest you will see lots of pictures of nests that wild quail have built