If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.
Jap Quail? nice little birds - can be really beastly if you have more than one cock bird by accident. We have two young cocks that upon maturing one literally pecked the throat out of the other. Had to cull it.
THey are very good layers, although they wont use a nest box and literally lay the egg where they stand. You can keep around 6 hens per cock bird if you want fertile eggs for hatching and rearing. Also, in our experience the hens are more settled with a cock bird around and lay a bit better, but that might just be us being swayed slightly.
For keeping them, they absolutely hate the damp. We found the best way to keep them is either in an aviary with a roof over, in a shed (but thats a bit battery farming for me) or in a large rabbit hutch off the floor.
A decent 5'x2'x2' rabbit hutch on legs so that it is off the ground will support half a dozen quail easily. Feed them on chick crumb and millet etc and you will do well out of them.
Be very careful if they get out, as they fly straight up like a rocket and you will never see them again!
any other questions - ask. oh, by the way, they make crap mothers so you will need to artificially incubate of thats your want.
the japanese quail "coturnix coturnix" is the basic bird, which the laying quail is derived from. I believe the Italian Quail is the equivalent of a hybrid layer in the quail world, however, they are so inter mingled now, we just bought half a dozen "quail" from an auction (�1.50 each) and they gave us good egg numbers for several years.
RT - forgot to say, make sure the rabbit hutch is rat proof. If that means changing the wire to 1/4" then do so. a rat can destroy whole flocks of quail in one sitting, so make sure that the b***ers dont get anywhere near your quail
I love pickled quails eggs and am currently planning new recipes, unfortunately only have a pair of quails at the moment and girlie is off lay (she did lay enough for half a dozen when she was laying) .... promised OH no more chooks or ducks never said anything about quial.........
what do you peel them for sally - if you boil them for pickling put them in shell and all (if you break the shell a bit first and use malt vinegar you get marbled eggs) - any other use you crack them like normal eggs!!!
Corax - you need more quail - incase 1 dies ... thats your excuse
Comment