-
Jeremy brua
- Senior Member
- Posts: 185
- Joined: Tue Apr 24, 2012 8:41 pm
- Location: Western Pa.
Anyone raise quail?
I will be picking up 2 dozen in a few weeks. Any info, tips, do's, and donts would be great!
What kind of quail are they, Jeremy? Will they be day-old chicks?
I have had Couturnix quail. Usually, I have small flocks of laying hens but I once thought that it would be easier & fun to have the quail.
There were over 30 in my garage. They are egg-layers, for sure! The eggs are surprisingly large from such tiny birds. I mean, they aren't much larger than robins but the eggs are almost large enuf to handle easily. I say almost large enuf but, they aren't really. Not for someone with large hands. Still, hard boiling them is easy and then they can be peeled without the danger of dropping one and breaking it or getting shell in the frying pan.
They don't have much of a productive life-span. There is a researcher at a nearby university who studies aging in animals by studying Coturnix quail. It is kind of too bad but the little creatures live life in the fast lane . . .
Steve
I have had Couturnix quail. Usually, I have small flocks of laying hens but I once thought that it would be easier & fun to have the quail.
There were over 30 in my garage. They are egg-layers, for sure! The eggs are surprisingly large from such tiny birds. I mean, they aren't much larger than robins but the eggs are almost large enuf to handle easily. I say almost large enuf but, they aren't really. Not for someone with large hands. Still, hard boiling them is easy and then they can be peeled without the danger of dropping one and breaking it or getting shell in the frying pan.
They don't have much of a productive life-span. There is a researcher at a nearby university who studies aging in animals by studying Coturnix quail. It is kind of too bad but the little creatures live life in the fast lane . . .
Steve
-
Jeremy brua
- Senior Member
- Posts: 185
- Joined: Tue Apr 24, 2012 8:41 pm
- Location: Western Pa.
My husband's uncle used to raise both pheasant and quail, but that was 40 years ago, so I don't have any advice.
The only quail here since the blizzard of 1978 have Bern those raised to release, then they never make it.thru the winter. About 15 years ago we went over to the barn to do chores, I told my husband I heard a quail. He said I was hearing things. Sure enough, when we got up t o the house, there was a quail sitting on t h e fence. He was thrilled to see us, following us wherever we went. For several days he was there all the time, hanging around anyone who showed up. Less than a week later, went to barn and all there was of him was feathers. Evidently he tried to make friends with the cats, too.
The only quail here since the blizzard of 1978 have Bern those raised to release, then they never make it.thru the winter. About 15 years ago we went over to the barn to do chores, I told my husband I heard a quail. He said I was hearing things. Sure enough, when we got up t o the house, there was a quail sitting on t h e fence. He was thrilled to see us, following us wherever we went. For several days he was there all the time, hanging around anyone who showed up. Less than a week later, went to barn and all there was of him was feathers. Evidently he tried to make friends with the cats, too.
Jeremy, Coturnix quail are much like chickens while they are chicks. They are just really, really tiny!
I will relate a bad experience with one and get that out of the way. It could have happened with a Rhode Island Red - it was just being stupid. They came thru the post office and must have been cold on arrival. I had my little brood box and light but foolishly thought I should disentangle the mass of tiny chicks. I must have broke the leg on one of them. He later drowned in the water container. Bad experience - leave them to sort themselves out, they are almost too tiny to be handled. Water dish? Putting marbles in there (so it isn't so deep) has been what I've seen recommended, too late.
I remember thinking that they looked like tiny bees and they would all get to a game of follow the leader and buzz around in circles. When they got older the cocks really must be separated - they fight & fight. If these are "straight run" you will get about as many cockerels as pullets. Too many as the recommendation is 1 cock to 2 hens/cage. You should make plans on what to do with the extra cocks and decide early on if you want to continue in the quail business . . . replacements are important.
If they weren't so darn productive in the egg department, they'd be a kind of silly choice with 10 or so cocks all crowing like mad amongst all the little cages. You'll start losing them in their 2nd season. I kept one hen for something like 4 years. She only had my pigeons for company.
Steve
I will relate a bad experience with one and get that out of the way. It could have happened with a Rhode Island Red - it was just being stupid. They came thru the post office and must have been cold on arrival. I had my little brood box and light but foolishly thought I should disentangle the mass of tiny chicks. I must have broke the leg on one of them. He later drowned in the water container. Bad experience - leave them to sort themselves out, they are almost too tiny to be handled. Water dish? Putting marbles in there (so it isn't so deep) has been what I've seen recommended, too late.
I remember thinking that they looked like tiny bees and they would all get to a game of follow the leader and buzz around in circles. When they got older the cocks really must be separated - they fight & fight. If these are "straight run" you will get about as many cockerels as pullets. Too many as the recommendation is 1 cock to 2 hens/cage. You should make plans on what to do with the extra cocks and decide early on if you want to continue in the quail business . . . replacements are important.
If they weren't so darn productive in the egg department, they'd be a kind of silly choice with 10 or so cocks all crowing like mad amongst all the little cages. You'll start losing them in their 2nd season. I kept one hen for something like 4 years. She only had my pigeons for company.
Steve
-
Jeremy brua
- Senior Member
- Posts: 185
- Joined: Tue Apr 24, 2012 8:41 pm
- Location: Western Pa.
-
Jeremy brua
- Senior Member
- Posts: 185
- Joined: Tue Apr 24, 2012 8:41 pm
- Location: Western Pa.
-
Jeremy brua
- Senior Member
- Posts: 185
- Joined: Tue Apr 24, 2012 8:41 pm
- Location: Western Pa.
.-
Jeremy brua
- Senior Member
- Posts: 185
- Joined: Tue Apr 24, 2012 8:41 pm
- Location: Western Pa.
-
ElizabethB
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 2105
- Joined: Sat Nov 24, 2012 12:53 am
- Location: Lafayette, LA
My Dad went through fazes of raising fowl. He raised ducks, chickens, guinea hens and quail. He had an incubator and raised his quail from eggs. I was an adult and out of the house so I don't know the day-to-day details. I do know that we had some great dinners of smothered quail and quail gumbo. Yumm Yumm!
Mom made pickled quail eggs. Wonderful for a snack or diced and mixed with a salad or in an omelette.
Dad had a completely covered grass pen for his birds. It was a contraption of 2" x 4" and chicken wire that he could move to different areas of the yard so his birds had fresh grass. The top had to be covered otherwise the hawks got his birds.
Enjoy your birds. When is dinner?
Mom made pickled quail eggs. Wonderful for a snack or diced and mixed with a salad or in an omelette.
Dad had a completely covered grass pen for his birds. It was a contraption of 2" x 4" and chicken wire that he could move to different areas of the yard so his birds had fresh grass. The top had to be covered otherwise the hawks got his birds.
Enjoy your birds. When is dinner?
