I’ll start with our quail fail. When we returned from Church on Sunday morning, to our horror we were three down on the count in the brooder. We were conscious that the tiny birds could probably squeeze through the mesh, so we’d installed a cardboard wall. The chicks had discovered and widened a gap and made a bid for freedom.
The left hand corner was the weak point. We reinforced it at once to stop further escapes.
Then we set about searching for the escapees. One was in a dark corner under a table. Another was in a corner behind a chair. Both looked as if they were on the point of death, since they’d become chilled. But both revived magically in the warmth and humidity of the incubator.
But of the third there was no sign. We eventually concluded that he must have escaped in the evening before we’d shut the french windows, and had scuttled outside. Since outside is full of magpies, jays, rats from the sports club, and cats from the neighbourhood we didn’t rate his chances. In any case he wouldn’t have survived the cool of the night.
We were sad to have lost even one, but relieved to have recovered two. And to add to the positive side of the equation, another egg hatched on Sunday morning. Full marks to the R-Com 20 for a very high hatch rate. So we still have 17. They won’t stay still long enough to get a full school photo, but here are some shots of the brooder. Imagine them constantly scurrying about and you’ll get the idea!
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