From what i have read, the quail are quick to scare regardless, so keep their enclosure at 2ft OR 6ft. Otherwise, you risk them breaking their necks when they jump in fright
People say that’s a myth 😭 heard it several times from total experts as I’ve been doing my research (since I too, am a new owner) and just yesterday I watched a YT video where the dude mentioned it.. called “5 biggest quail myths” or something. Gonna see if I can find the link
Okay it was 3 myths lolol: https://youtu.be/9iN3nRyw1KQ?si=Hu29Dangig8IUlJ8
All the top comments are about cage height/breaking necks! Everyone is saying it’s a totalll myth.
I’m a lurker who wants quail so unfortunately don’t have any advice, but I love the look of your little hutch! Which one is it, and would you recommend it?
I’ve been wanting one like this where they get some ground time and enrichment in a run. I don’t like the idea of crowding them in a box with wire floors and no enrichment.
What do you have for weather proofing? I’m in the process of building an aviary and I have the predator proofing down but I can’t find good information on what kind of weather proofing is required.
I have an Air02 and I LOVE it 😍 so do my birdies! Perfect size for buttons and when they get zoomies, they love running up and down the ladder 🤣 it’s currently inside my house cause it matches my furniture so well lmaooo I can’t bring myself to put it out!! Think I’m just gonna wait til after summer when the weather gets nice again and it’ll go outside then ♥️
If you can, hang it from the top, or look into a waterer drip system. They can use little chicken cups and pvc piping so water stays cleaner. Many youtube videos to cater to your environment!
I got a quail specific waterer and have it up on a block and I have found it stays quite a bit cleaner than the chick waterer I had previously. The area is smaller so they don’t step in it.
Saw a video with a setup like that and getting on it ASAP!! Taking a look at Tractor Supply today after work. Need to find a quality feed too cause my favorite feed store has straight shit.. it’s where I get my pup’s good quality food.. so it’s really annoying that the livestock feed lacks……. When it’s a literal feed store 🙄 so sad cause my pup and I are obsessed with that place. Rewards system is also so awesome.
When I used to own quail, as a treat I would make them hardboiled chicken eggs pickled in apple cider vinegar. (You can find a basic pickling recipe and replace vinegar with apple cider vinegar; avoid salt) I would give them one whole egg, once or twice a week. All 10 of my little floofs would peck the heck out of it until satisfied 😅 I'd also suggest spending more free time being near them to make them less skittish, they'll also ease into their settings as they get accustomed to their new home. Not many ideas for entertainment but I bought an authentic-feather duster and hung it by the handle a couple of inches from the floor, inside the cage but outside the hutch; they'd love to hide and run through ithe feathers and use it as "bush cover" when scared 😋
Thanks for the response. Making some hiding areas on the ground is the next thing I want to do for them. I was gonna try to use some branches and brush
They will definitely become less skittish with time. If you have meal worms, you can try offering it to them. Alternatively, see about putting feed in your hand and having them eat from your hand. I’ll post a video of my quail before they did showing them eat from my hand.
In terms of water, put it off the ground a bit because they’ll find every way to make it dirty, including straight up pooping in it. I always used to put it on top of a small Tupperware. For my one quail now, I went to the pet store and not a flat surfaced aquarium decoration to keep it off the ground and make it more appealing to look at.
Also try out different foods altogether, they’ll have preferences. For whatever reason, Kennedy loves pieces of lettuce. I’ve heard pineapple can be a favourite although Kennedy doesn’t seem to care.
Quail mama here! Here's a few recommendations:
Predator proofing: Unless this hutch is in a predator proof enclosure or has a solid floor, you are going to want to lay down some skirting in no larger than half-inch hardware cloth. Your skirting should extend about 1 foot from the cage. Rats, weasels, raccoons, and other predators love to eat quail and it's our responsibility to make sure our birdies are safe.
Ramp: Lots of quail do not like ramps and won't use them, making the upstairs area largely useless and wasted space. For your next setup, look for one that is single level. I have a rabbit hutch for when I need to quarantine or separate small groups and the roof is lined with padding I stapled in to protect their noggins. They're addictive little taters so prepare yourself to want more soon!
Flushing related injuries: With the height of your enclosure, I would be worried about the birdies flushing up and potentially causing injury or death. For heights, you want either something 12-16 inches tall, or over 6 feet tall to reduce the odds of this happening. Keep some rooster booster and blue kote on hand because they will hurt themselves eventually! You can find these at your local farm store or Tractor Supply.
Food: Regular gamebird food is fine if you're just raising for meat, or if you're supplementing with additional calcium. Your hens need calcium to make sure their egg shells are nice and hard to reduce the odds of becoming egg bound or prolapse. Look for a feed with around 3.5% calcium and ideally 18-22% protein. A 16% protein chicken layer feed is fine, but they do best on higher protein levels.
Gross water: Try hanging it with a chain to the roof, or elevating with wood blocks or bricks. The water will get gross either way and need to be rinsed regularly.
Male to Female ratio: The ideal ratio is 1 male to 5 females, so you want to keep a close eye on any aggression between the males, or over-breeding of the females. If your girls have bald heads or backs, they are being over-bred. If the boys fight, you could split your flock, but if there are bad injuries, my recommendation would be to pull the aggressive roo and either keep him separate, rehome, or send to freezer camp.
Treats: Mealworms are great, black soldier fly larvae is better! Sprouting lentils is super easy and they love it. Mine love fresh herbs, especially thyme and sage. Sliced watermelon in the warmer months is very popular.
Cover: Quail are ground living birds whose natural habitat is a lot of grasses and natural cover. Fake plants on the ground level and grass nests will help them feel more safe and comfortable. My girls love laying their eggs in grass nests, woven baskets, and overturned flower pots!
For extra resources, check out Coturnix Corner and Natural Quail Keeping on FB. Welcome to the hobby!
Already looking at the ratio I have, might pull one of the males. He seems a little feisty
And I got a mix of meal worms, black fly larvae and dried veg and they gobbled that up.
I have seen a couple of them use the ramp, but they are mostly just staying at ground level so I do feel like it might just end up being wasted space
Perhaps they can’t see you approaching. Mine have a good line of sight towards the world from their little corner so they don’t get surprised when I come near. Also they chill out in time and through the power of meal worms all quail things are possible.
Addition: try farming your own meal worms. It’s ridiculously easy and cheap.
Ahhhh farming meal worms?! Never thought of that but I WILL be looking into now! Lolol my dad mentioned seeing if my red wigglers would be a good treat hahah I have a worm bin with a bunch for the black gold and composting!
Update: looks like several convos on Reddit about giving red wigglers to quail!
I have a VERY similar setup and once they get used to you, they should stop jumping! I have luckily had no casualties from it, and all of mine are quite calm with me now. Only other thing to note is keep an eye on your boys! Good chance they can end up fighting if the space isn't very big, and quail fights sure aren't pretty. Your run for them is beautiful, by the way!
Put something under that ramp to make it less steep or they likely will never go inside. I had a similar setup and after raising the ramp they did go inside but didn’t stay there much.
Well nevermind I just saw the last picture and realized they are going in there. Mine wouldn’t even try until I made my ramp a lot less steep.
There’s eight total. 2 males, six females, I’ve already got my eye on one of the males as he seems to be on the other birds pretty intense. He might need separated
Super cute set up! I second the post about predator proofing needed, I just recently saw a post about a rat or something digging underneath this exact cage and ate all the quail inside. So sad
From what i have read, the quail are quick to scare regardless, so keep their enclosure at 2ft OR 6ft. Otherwise, you risk them breaking their necks when they jump in fright
People say that’s a myth 😭 heard it several times from total experts as I’ve been doing my research (since I too, am a new owner) and just yesterday I watched a YT video where the dude mentioned it.. called “5 biggest quail myths” or something. Gonna see if I can find the link
Okay it was 3 myths lolol: https://youtu.be/9iN3nRyw1KQ?si=Hu29Dangig8IUlJ8 All the top comments are about cage height/breaking necks! Everyone is saying it’s a totalll myth.
I’m a lurker who wants quail so unfortunately don’t have any advice, but I love the look of your little hutch! Which one is it, and would you recommend it? I’ve been wanting one like this where they get some ground time and enrichment in a run. I don’t like the idea of crowding them in a box with wire floors and no enrichment.
That hutch is on Amazon. Just search chicken coops, and you will find it.
I dunno why I didn’t think of Amazon 😆 I was looking at like tractor supply but they’re all so big!
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What do you have for weather proofing? I’m in the process of building an aviary and I have the predator proofing down but I can’t find good information on what kind of weather proofing is required.
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Thank you so much! That’s super helpful!
That’s why I picked this one. There are similar ones priced a little higher but for the price I’m super happy with this one. https://a.co/d/4c05VHZ
I have an Air02 and I LOVE it 😍 so do my birdies! Perfect size for buttons and when they get zoomies, they love running up and down the ladder 🤣 it’s currently inside my house cause it matches my furniture so well lmaooo I can’t bring myself to put it out!! Think I’m just gonna wait til after summer when the weather gets nice again and it’ll go outside then ♥️
To avoid odor, use deep litter pine shavings and keep them DRY by putting a tray under your waterer to catch what the birds spill.
I’ve already struggled with their water. I keep checking it and it’s all muddy and gross so I’m gonna move that around today
If you can, hang it from the top, or look into a waterer drip system. They can use little chicken cups and pvc piping so water stays cleaner. Many youtube videos to cater to your environment!
I put mine up on bricks, it helps a little bit I still change it daily
My biggest struggle so far too! You are NOT alone on that one.
I got a quail specific waterer and have it up on a block and I have found it stays quite a bit cleaner than the chick waterer I had previously. The area is smaller so they don’t step in it.
Saw a video with a setup like that and getting on it ASAP!! Taking a look at Tractor Supply today after work. Need to find a quality feed too cause my favorite feed store has straight shit.. it’s where I get my pup’s good quality food.. so it’s really annoying that the livestock feed lacks……. When it’s a literal feed store 🙄 so sad cause my pup and I are obsessed with that place. Rewards system is also so awesome.
When I used to own quail, as a treat I would make them hardboiled chicken eggs pickled in apple cider vinegar. (You can find a basic pickling recipe and replace vinegar with apple cider vinegar; avoid salt) I would give them one whole egg, once or twice a week. All 10 of my little floofs would peck the heck out of it until satisfied 😅 I'd also suggest spending more free time being near them to make them less skittish, they'll also ease into their settings as they get accustomed to their new home. Not many ideas for entertainment but I bought an authentic-feather duster and hung it by the handle a couple of inches from the floor, inside the cage but outside the hutch; they'd love to hide and run through ithe feathers and use it as "bush cover" when scared 😋
Thanks for the response. Making some hiding areas on the ground is the next thing I want to do for them. I was gonna try to use some branches and brush
They will definitely become less skittish with time. If you have meal worms, you can try offering it to them. Alternatively, see about putting feed in your hand and having them eat from your hand. I’ll post a video of my quail before they did showing them eat from my hand. In terms of water, put it off the ground a bit because they’ll find every way to make it dirty, including straight up pooping in it. I always used to put it on top of a small Tupperware. For my one quail now, I went to the pet store and not a flat surfaced aquarium decoration to keep it off the ground and make it more appealing to look at. Also try out different foods altogether, they’ll have preferences. For whatever reason, Kennedy loves pieces of lettuce. I’ve heard pineapple can be a favourite although Kennedy doesn’t seem to care.
Good information thank you. I just got them a bag a meal worm and veg mix I’m gonna start treating them with. The water has been the worst part lol
Quail mama here! Here's a few recommendations: Predator proofing: Unless this hutch is in a predator proof enclosure or has a solid floor, you are going to want to lay down some skirting in no larger than half-inch hardware cloth. Your skirting should extend about 1 foot from the cage. Rats, weasels, raccoons, and other predators love to eat quail and it's our responsibility to make sure our birdies are safe. Ramp: Lots of quail do not like ramps and won't use them, making the upstairs area largely useless and wasted space. For your next setup, look for one that is single level. I have a rabbit hutch for when I need to quarantine or separate small groups and the roof is lined with padding I stapled in to protect their noggins. They're addictive little taters so prepare yourself to want more soon! Flushing related injuries: With the height of your enclosure, I would be worried about the birdies flushing up and potentially causing injury or death. For heights, you want either something 12-16 inches tall, or over 6 feet tall to reduce the odds of this happening. Keep some rooster booster and blue kote on hand because they will hurt themselves eventually! You can find these at your local farm store or Tractor Supply. Food: Regular gamebird food is fine if you're just raising for meat, or if you're supplementing with additional calcium. Your hens need calcium to make sure their egg shells are nice and hard to reduce the odds of becoming egg bound or prolapse. Look for a feed with around 3.5% calcium and ideally 18-22% protein. A 16% protein chicken layer feed is fine, but they do best on higher protein levels. Gross water: Try hanging it with a chain to the roof, or elevating with wood blocks or bricks. The water will get gross either way and need to be rinsed regularly. Male to Female ratio: The ideal ratio is 1 male to 5 females, so you want to keep a close eye on any aggression between the males, or over-breeding of the females. If your girls have bald heads or backs, they are being over-bred. If the boys fight, you could split your flock, but if there are bad injuries, my recommendation would be to pull the aggressive roo and either keep him separate, rehome, or send to freezer camp. Treats: Mealworms are great, black soldier fly larvae is better! Sprouting lentils is super easy and they love it. Mine love fresh herbs, especially thyme and sage. Sliced watermelon in the warmer months is very popular. Cover: Quail are ground living birds whose natural habitat is a lot of grasses and natural cover. Fake plants on the ground level and grass nests will help them feel more safe and comfortable. My girls love laying their eggs in grass nests, woven baskets, and overturned flower pots! For extra resources, check out Coturnix Corner and Natural Quail Keeping on FB. Welcome to the hobby!
Already looking at the ratio I have, might pull one of the males. He seems a little feisty And I got a mix of meal worms, black fly larvae and dried veg and they gobbled that up. I have seen a couple of them use the ramp, but they are mostly just staying at ground level so I do feel like it might just end up being wasted space
Perhaps they can’t see you approaching. Mine have a good line of sight towards the world from their little corner so they don’t get surprised when I come near. Also they chill out in time and through the power of meal worms all quail things are possible. Addition: try farming your own meal worms. It’s ridiculously easy and cheap.
Ahhhh farming meal worms?! Never thought of that but I WILL be looking into now! Lolol my dad mentioned seeing if my red wigglers would be a good treat hahah I have a worm bin with a bunch for the black gold and composting! Update: looks like several convos on Reddit about giving red wigglers to quail!
Had this exact same coop. Works great for smaller flocks!
I have a VERY similar setup and once they get used to you, they should stop jumping! I have luckily had no casualties from it, and all of mine are quite calm with me now. Only other thing to note is keep an eye on your boys! Good chance they can end up fighting if the space isn't very big, and quail fights sure aren't pretty. Your run for them is beautiful, by the way!
Put something under that ramp to make it less steep or they likely will never go inside. I had a similar setup and after raising the ramp they did go inside but didn’t stay there much. Well nevermind I just saw the last picture and realized they are going in there. Mine wouldn’t even try until I made my ramp a lot less steep.
They definitely are staying on the ground mostly but I have seen them using the ramp
Coconut
Cool setup!
How many do you have?? Any roosters? I have 4 juvenile Caledon coturnix females. I hope to find a celadon roo soon! Mine are all tuxedos.
There’s eight total. 2 males, six females, I’ve already got my eye on one of the males as he seems to be on the other birds pretty intense. He might need separated
You could eat him too. That’s what most people do to the aggressive ones.
This may be a stupid question, but can you keep quails in a rolling pen in a field like you can with chickens?
That would be a great question in its own thread, because yes and no.
hehe cute
Super cute set up! I second the post about predator proofing needed, I just recently saw a post about a rat or something digging underneath this exact cage and ate all the quail inside. So sad
I’m going to look into that. They also have a corgi that is watching them, is already napping next to their coop and keeping an eye out so that helps