Quails a'plenty

We got quails! 

After a short two weeks in the 'bator, the quail eggs started popping like popcorn. 

 Of the fifty-something eggs we put in to cook, we ended up with 39 walnut sized, chipmunk colored quail babies or "cheepers." 

This time I got smart and lined the brooder box with puppy pee pads. They are absorbent, offer better footing than newspaper, and I can toss them when they get too soiled (which happens pretty quick with almost 40 little birds all pooping in the same area). I used to use towel to line the brooder, and boy was that a gross cleanup job.

 The brick is in the brooder to absorb heat from the lamb and help keep the tiny little guys warm.

These cheepers are so tiny that the regular crumbled poultry food is too big for them. We have to toss cupfuls into the food processor before offering it to them.

So what does fate hold for these little guys? 

Since we had a number of adults disappear on us, we will be using a lot of the females from this group to restore our numbers. The males will probably end up as food.

Unfortunately since the law considers quail to be game birds instead of poultry, we cannot legally sell them for human consumption. Luckily, there is a good market for exotic meats for raw cat and dog food in our area so any extra males will be processed and sold for healthy, natural pet food. 

ETA: Here is a little video I took on my phone of the day old babies. Everything looks red because the are under an infrared heat lamp.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaaHcqsUGD4&feature=g-upl