So, it seems throughout my life birds have always had a role. From chickens to Macaws there has nearly always been a feathered element in my world since childhood. Well, last week I picked up a few quail (5) from my fathers flock while down in KS. We built a small hutch to keep them in with the intent to play around, get some eggs and just take it from there. But, I seem to never be able to just dabble. Five quail quickly grew to 10 and 3 turkeys also somehow found their way home with me. So I says to myself..... self, I think you need a big flight pen to house these quail and make additional room for some ringnecks.... A few trips to the lumberyard later.... This is stage 1... with only the initial structure complete. Tonight we will be planting bunch grasses within the pen for the quail to nest. A shelter box is being built off the back end for cold and in-climate weather, then the turkey run will be 90 degrees to the right off that. These birds have never been in anything larger than a hutch until last night and boy DO THEY LOVE IT!! Its fun to sit and watch them fly about, play in their sandbox, and watch the roosters crow and chase the ladies. Pheasants are still about 3 weeks away from arriving so we have alot to do to get this project complete. Figure I will post new pics as we progress... Anyone else raising any gamebirds?
Got some bunch grasses planted this evening. They are really digging it. Sent from my SM-G960U using Bowhunting.com Forums mobile app
Gonna rig an automatic watering system for the plants and the birds. Gotta get it mapped put on paper so I can order all the stuffs and things I need. Sent from my SM-G960U using Bowhunting.com Forums mobile app
I once had a bantam rooster breed pheasant hens and the eggs hatched at a very low ratio but sold them at an exotic auction for $25 each.
I loved raising and hatching birds, had a hell of a lab that loved finding them he would get a nose full and look at me like hey boss lets get this. Called him the nose.
My pup Stella enjoys watching them for sure. Sent from my SM-G960U using Bowhunting.com Forums mobile app
No, at least not where we live. I would imagine in some cities there may be an issue with what you are allowed to keep, especially at the scale I have them but in the smaller hutch's that most folks have them in you could keep a bakers dozen in any garage, shed, or backyard. The roosters do crow, but nothing near as loud as a rooster chicken. In fact I can barely hear their crowing unless pretty close to the pen.
I did, first off the smaller hardware cloth for fencing. As opposed to say regular chicken wire. That is to keep snakes out which can feast on the quail and the eggs. I ran that screening down past the bottom of the framing far enough it is buried into the ground. There will also be landscaping rocks around the base in the same area to further discourage any digging by nefarious critters.
What is your capacity? I raised pheasants and some quail but the pheasant chicks would get to pecking each other, would throw ground fallen apples into the cage to give them something to peck at.
I guess that's relative. What I would consider capacity vs how I see some folks keep quail, 20+ in a small hutch, I don't want to keep them in that fashion. I am targeting between 10-15 quail at a given time in this pen. The two smaller hutch's I have will be for brooding chicks, as my hens become unproductive and ready for the table I will back fill with new birds. I also have 6 huns I am picking up this week for this pen. So in total about 20 birds. I have 10 straight run pheasant chicks coming but they are a few weeks out. I am splitting those with a guy who works for me. I know folks who keep their quail and pheasants in the same pen but I'm not sure I want to do that. They will likely have their own space. They say quail only need 1 sq ft per bird, by that rate I would have room for 60 or so. lol Seems very excessive IMO Yeah, the quail can be lil peckerheads as well. 50/50 solution of H2O and Apple Cider vinegar sprayed lightly on the birds seems to rectify them pecking each other. However, since moving them to the big pen I haven't seen any pecking. I have a roo who was bullying my younger white hen when in the hutch but they seem to have enough to do now that they are pre-occupied. The apples are a good idea though! I have some mealworm cakes I throw in there they like pecking at as well. I also add a small amount of ACV to their drinking water. About 1 tsp / gal. Supposed to be good for them...
Made a bit of progress in the past week. Struggling to find time to dedicate with other projects we have going, but slowly but surely things are getting done. Got the box built and installed on the pen. I think Katie will paint it one day yet this week. Cool lil pair off quail egg scissors we got. Slices just the right amount of shell off so you can pour the egg right out. Sent from my SM-G960U using Bowhunting.com Forums mobile app
I can't say with any certainty. I've never had bantams. I can say the quail eggs have a somewhat softer shell than a regular chicken egg. They ALMOST have a reptile softness to them. They are a lot thinner with a heavier inner membrane making cracking them to cook with a bit more difficult. The lil scissors make it a breeze. On the plus side, those same characteristics make them surprisingly easy to peel when hard boiled, which is maybe my favorite way to eat them. Being bite sized they make for good snacking whether during breakfast hours or in the evening with a beer and some pickled okra. That reminds me... I need to pickle some of them. In other news I have about a dozen eggs rocking right now. Hoping to get a few more before turning the incubator on Friday. This will be my first solo attempt at hatching my own.
Well... we haven't made a lot of additional progress on the build. The past few weekends have been busy camping and otherwise playing. But, my first hatch has started. First chick popped last night and 4-5 more working their way our now. Thought I'd share a few pics.
