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I raised quail 50 years ago and used plastic totes under the cages to catch the droppings feathers and any cracked eggs. The totes used deep bedding, about 10 inches, and earth worms to mix and compost everything down. Once established I used dry grass clippings to top things off. Other than that you only need to adjust the moisture.
This is exactly what my husband and I are doing right now, and keep wondering why everyone else uses trays. You're the first one we have seen that used bins underneath to do the deep litter method. Also worms! 😃 We use the breeze system for our cats, and altered it immediately to putting a deep litter box underneath it to use instead of the tray that comes with it. We put a charcoal liner at the bottom, then pine pellets (kiln dried) on top, and sprinkle in some food grade diatomaceous earth. It lasts a week or two before we have to empty it out, and put a new liner and pellets in. The liner makes it super easy to just fold each corner in and throw it all away. No muss, no fuss. 🙂 So, when we decided to start raising quail, we immediately knew we wanted to have the same type of set up. Especially, since we have them in a small extra bedroom in the house instead of outdoors. Whenever we are able to have them outside, we'll just let the droppings hit the ground, combine with wood ash and diatomaceous earth to keep any odor down, and use as compost. So much easier. Thank you for sharing your experience!
@PatriotGirl USA D.E. is a desiccant, won't it be counter productive used in compost as it is crystalline in form, which is how it kills insects - by slicing through their exoskeleton which allows all their moisture to dissipate, killing them. It will cut into your Earthworms as well (at least I can't imagine how it would not).
ive just taken away my last male and the difference is amazing , they had an hour of looking around for him then , peace came down, its totally different , the 3 females now , feed, chill and stretch out in the sun , totally relaxed , wish i had done it as soon as they matured
10:53 hey man you should consider using a magnet on the Bottom of the water bowl you can super glue it on and when the water level is low and birds are jumping around it will hold in place
Please explain what exactly on the mouth piece that they can understand?? I've had a water bottle with the floating metal ball....and my 3 mature hens are not getting the hang of it. They are actually in a bird flight cage with ½in bars. Can anybody help? I'm fairly new at this... just raised 3 hatchings that my daughter incubated from her quails eggs I hand-picked my covey from all the babies. I'm currently getting 3 eggs a day, with lots of little ladies maturing soon.😊But the water situatiin is my quandary. I really struggle and def want to get them plenty of fresh water. Any ideas welcome ...commercial product or home grown invention. 😊thank yall.I
@@michelleg1225I put 2 forms of water in my cages. They came with a watering system that empties into a metal teat in each cage. They tap that and watter comes out into a cup below it. When I check the system I go by starting in the far upper cage working my way across to each teat and tap until watter starts coming out. They always get curious what my finger in doing, see the water in the cup and peck my finger or peck where my finger was to find that noise I made thst brought the water. This same tapping is similar to the tapping necessary to use the rabbit waterers. I use a rabbit waterer in each cage in addition to the waterinf system in case it takes one a while to learn or in case one thing runs out of water. When I had some in a plastic container, I always use a small chicken waterer and a rabbit waterer. Eventally these birds learn from each other. I have about 20 so there are morw examples. Hold the birds up to water, tap it with your finger and see if you can get them to catch a drip. If they could just find out what is in it.
@@michelleg1225 My quail must be smarter than yours 😛. I moved my 5 week old hens into a rabbit cage while I was cleaning their cage and next thing you know I heard the water bottle clicking and they all seemed obsessed with the shiny metal ball in the end the water bottle. I swapped my water system and never looked back.
@gjmottet I gave up LOL they're just using the bird water cups that came with the cage, and I change them every day. Those are my divas. Then 5 are in a rabbit hutch with a trough waterer elevated a little. We're in central Florida, so it's just vital that no one ever is without. They're all doing well. 9 hens, no males to bother them...and we get 6-8 eggs daily, so I think they're happy. I just have them aa pets; they're super spoiled... I let them have free time on our enclosed porch, and a couple of them will hang out on my lap. I've learned so much from this community on this channel. Quail people have turned out to be pretty nice and helpful, too.😉
I see that this is months later but I figured I'd give a tip. Smear a thin coating of silicone on the bottom of your waterers or feeders and let it dry. It will give some friction on the cages to keep them in place better.
Most pets are an expense and a responsibility, quail are incredibly independent affectionate and clever if you teach them yourself plus they provide a protein source as a reward for your effort, I'd go as far as to suggest they are one of the best pet options on the planet for these reasons,, 2000 odd years of domestication has made them fantastic companions....
Thank you so much! There is a lot we are learning about raising quail, and we hope to share it in a way others will want to listen to, so thank you so much for watching!
I prefer free fly ..can't stand any species that is farmed not kept as natural as possible. Its more time and Space consuming but just better for us all.I am sure you are doing your best but not for me
This was wonderfully informative. With the price of eggs and meat, I wonder if my family would be willing to give quail a try. Seems like they provide a good return on investment. My only concern is slaughtering them. I'm... Not sure I'm up to the task. I could do everything after that, I'm not terribly squeamish... And I know that's where meat comes from, and have every respect for the farmers that do so.
I have been raising bobwhite quail for just over 2 years. I've had one male separated for about a year now because he is extremely aggressive toward both males and females. Today when I walked the pens I found an egg in with him. Full size egg. I haven't opened it yet. His pen is fully enclosed with 1/4" metal mesh. I'm absolutely confused. Color and markings are well defined bobwhite male. I have females and the difference is very obvious. Is it possible I have a female with very high levels of testosterone causing male coloration and extreme aggression? Please help.
Had decent results starting this year's batch of quails on soaked then fermented feed. Once they've learned that wet food is edible, the waste went down drastically. As a bonus they seem to be eating a lot less.
"Start them off with game bird feed ...starter" i thought this starter is for quails over 3-4 days old. Maybe i can have a suggestion here ? In first days i mean from day 0 to day 3-4 i feed them with boiled quail eggs that i mash and push through a sieve with the help of a soup spoon for example so i have small granulation and i sprinkle some poppy from market on top. Poppy have a great composition of calcium, thiamine, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc so its good for bones and developing. This recipe for feeding never gave me any problem and i bread quails for some time now on small scale like 200-250 quails, less in winter because i live in the middle of Carpathian Mountains in Romania and its a cold region. Sorry english is my 3rd language only, i try do my best :)
@@michelleseay1960 U might try to use blender for the boiled eggs ... i didn't try it yet the idea just hit me yesterday seeing someone doing that. Seen a guy using older eggs he didn't eat or sell he was separating the egg shells from the egg put them couple minutes in oven to dry them then he put the eggs in a blender and then in the oven couple minutes and then put the egg shells and the eggs again together in a blender to chop it all small pieces and feed his quails with it. He said there is protein in it and its all good quails don't know its own eggs as long as its baked .
TRY A cheap shoe box with cover both of plastic, put a 1.5 inch hole x 8 into the container and leave the whole thing in the cage till time to fill. Your feed waste will drop to almost zero!~
Yes, this works very well, and I only place about 2 cups of feed in it so they can't fling it out of the holes. I just use the ones from Walmart, they are inexpensive. If they start pushing it around, just place a brick on top.
Excellent video!!! I’m still finishing my “Terry” cages like yours. It was good to see some of your scalped quail and the back feathers. You don’t see that much on UA-cam and I would have had unrealistic expectations. Great information. I’ll watch it several times!!! Thanks for the great content!!!
Thank you so much for this comment. The cages are great. We are working on solidifying a good watering system still. You are right, the birds look beautiful and "new" only for a short time. The reality is, even with a good roo to hen ratio, you will get some of that scalping. That being said, they are incredible animals, and I am sure you will enjoy raising them.
Probably the best quail video I’ve seen. So much truth. I’d make the feed troffs a little deeper it helps with the splashing / raking affect. I’m using gallon milk jugs with 1-1/4 holes. I put a funnel on the top pour them full enough for my liking. For 6 birds I fill twice a week They like them you can see food level and free. The water supply is a gravity cup on outside of the cage they are rectangular and yellow from Amazon. They have 3/8” hose barb fittings so no clamps and they can’t walk on them.
Lol.. what's your name? ... Tony... lol 😂 😆 🤣 I imagine mine cursing each other out.. yo mamma... yeah.. yo granny.. bish please... I wish a .... would.. 😂🤣😅😆 Them roos of mine get fierce with the voices..
Good job on your video. Exalant presentation honest, sincere with a backdrop of humidity. Might I suggest a point 14 . 14 a discreet source of meat. Quail, like rabbits can be raised discreetly away from prying eyes. If you choose to be private.
That is such a great point. Really, that is a huge benefit in urban settings as well. That was a selling point for us. Thank you so much! We are glad you enjoyed the video. We are definitely still learning.
You've just started and doing is the best education, but I noticed several of your cages have twice as many birds for their sizes as they should. 1-1.5 sq ft per bird is a good metric.
If there are weisel in your area your wires to big. I had same cage weisel went threw my pens and killed them. Happy farming anything bigger the a quarter.
Great video👍. I see you did your research on these and covered so much more than most other channels. I didn’t know how many nutrients are in quail waste. Awesome! Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experience with quail.
Glad it was helpful! Have you been following our quail egg production journey? Please let us know if you have additional questions, and we will be happy to share our experience.
Great content. Thank you. where is the best place to get feed? Online or nearest feed store.? what prices should I be looking for. if I bought several months' worth? Thank you for any help you can send my way. Or any advice from your followers. Blessing. M
Whenever I try to keep quail in cages like that they end up killing each other pretty quickly. Usually attacking and fatally injuring the head. I keep food and water at all times. I don't over crowd. Pretty frustrated.
I notice some of the quails are missing feathers on the back of their heads, I am assuming these are females. Maybe males are being too rough or may be too many males and not enough females in the same cage. Thank you for the very informational video!
From my experience young males are rough at the beginning. You can have 1 male to 4 even 5 females i wouldn't go to 6 if i want eggs constantly. In cases like yours if i have 3-4 females like yours i just put them together with an older male or leave them couple days without a male till they recover. Best regards.
@@kalczarobertpretty sure quail are like chicken hens. You can have infinity females & get infinity eggs with absolutely no males involved at all. Fact: the only thing the male is good for is fertilized eggs / making new birds. That's it. In my opinion those most aggressive things are good for the freezer ASAP once they get size.
When I had a bully Roo that started attacking everyone, I separated him for a few days so the others could heal and put another Roo in with him but he attacked him too so I butchered them both. I was saddened because he was the biggest and prettiest bird I had. It was for the best even though it diminished my small covey.
@@trishawhite9901 my no 2 male did go real grumpy for a few days, but he seems ok now , he skulks a lot and the 3 females are real friendly , come to the door when i turn up with grubs,.. he may have to go , hes crafty , he will hold a worm or gub in his mouth an offer it to the females and the one who takes it gets a 'struggle cuddle' haha, im going to wait for the first lot of eggs and see if they brood
Hello all, sorry for the very late reply. I am getting caught up on comments. We have had to dispatch several of our aggressive males. I have done a good bit of reading and watching videos about separating them, but we haven't really had luck with that. Myshire farms has some good info on this, though, so you might look to them as well.
@@trishawhite9901 i have created i male with 2 females and a lone female , who seems desperate to keep pout of the way of the others , twice a day the male will (i presume want to mate so theres mayhem for a few minutes) do you think i should take that male away , and just have 3 females ? surely that would be more peaceful?
Thank you so much! Quail are definitely worth the try! I believe you should be able to feed them from your quail farm. They love bugs and worms, and even though we have not fed them from our vermiculture setup, I think we will do just that for a nice snack for them in the future. :) Please let us know what other questions you have, and we will do our best to answer. :)
@@GutenGardening My main questions are as follows: What temperature must the quail be at? I worry about feeding them over the winter but the ones in your garage seemed to take the cold well (I am on the PA/MD border so it's not as cold). How can you buy cages cheaply as I've found ones online I'd love to use but they're costly. At the same point, the expensive ones make it easy to feed/water them and easily take care of poop. Also, how does one sell quail eggs? Just an add on Craigslist or is it harder?
Hi I’m new to quails and I have those same cages I am desperately trying to find how to build the housing you have to set up my cages do you have a video on how you did your set up and the watered? I’d greatly appreciate the help thanks 🙏 Also, where did you get the trays? Please.
That is a great question! I don't believe I did a video myself on building the cages; however, I will link you to the video we used, and I can tell you we got the trays from Autozone. This video was done by Coturnix Corner: ua-cam.com/video/1cHY20GWyHg/v-deo.html
I like your video its very informative 👍 Recently got 11 coturnix quail they started laying as soon as I got them, I'm waiting for my incubator as I aim to achieve to be as productive as you I've subscribed bro
@@GutenGardening I got a mini II if that's what it's called it was only like 100 pound 💷 I got them from a farm where they were in fucking boxed cages now they can roam my garden and all sorts just hard getting them back in the pen lol Any tips for getting more eggs? I'm getting like 6 a day with no artificial light and the days are shortening here
We discovered that our quail can use rabbit water bottles and it makes it easy to keep water clean. It use a reptile rack system in the house in the winter (we live in a place with -40F winters). It works well.
Since you spoke of Clemson made me wonder if you're in the SC area. We're in central SC and considering raising quail. Wonderful information you've shared, thank you!!
I know the coturnix quail grow fast and are egg laying machines, but I'm kinda small homestead and I like the Georgia Giant Bobwhite. They take almost twice as long to grow, but they live longer and raise their own babies in a big outside coop. My tiny chickens 😅
We are so glad you enjoyed this video. Getting a comment like this is incredibly rewarding. We are learning a lot as well from raising our quail, so definitely stay tuned for more quail content in the near future.
Quail deserve space and solid ground to walk on to scratch around. They love it and are much happier in a nice environment.. why not just buy battery eggs otherwise?
Good overall quail keeping advice in one video. I have had similar experiences with quail raising. I like how you have emphasized the 'managing of biological waste' aka -poop-. It was my difficulty when starting. I have favoured the woodchip system only and not the metal container under the cage system. The second requires very frequent cleaning, but with the first you can leave for vacations and the poop situation will be ok when you return (and you can compost it outside in the garden). This was not emphasized enough in the first videos I watched when starting but it is in this video. Kudos for that.
Wow! Thank you so much for such an informative video! I've been researching quail for about 6 months now so its safe to say I've watched dozens and dozens of quail videos on here. Your video is by far one of the best I've seen! I'm a huge fan of Myshire Farm (I'm getting my first live quail delivery from them this week!) and I have to say, this video definitely ranks up with Zach's videos! I really appreciate how much work you put into this video 💙 🐣🪶
Glad it was helpful! Good luck with your new arrival. We started raising quails just over 7 months ago, so you are not too far behind us! Where will you house the quails?
@@GutenGardening We've had our quail for 4 days now! We have a coop from tractor supply, its more of an aviary style and comes unfinished so that you can paint it yourself (we chose blue with white trim). The quail are only 3 weeks old so we've got a while till they start laying. I really wanted to give them ample room and they seem to love it! They're always running around, frolicking, chasing bugs, etc. I might make my own video on them as I really would love to share our journey
I enjoyed your video and look forward to the day I can get my own. I now have the incubator and am working towards getting 2 or 3 cages. Then I will be in the ballpark. Thank you for sharing.
I really enjoyed this video alot. I currently have 64 Jumbo's and more hatching this weekend 🤯 Do you go by age or weight when you dispatch? Do you leave skin on or off? I have dispatched several now but always super disappointed when an aggressive roo dresses out to 6oz lol.
Thank you so much! We are really learning as we go. We just dispatched about 15 of our roos, and we did it based on age instead of weight. We left the skin on, though that definitely take a bit longer to process them. I read somewhere you can use hot wax for feather removal, but that is not something we have tried yet. Good luck with your hatchings! How do you like the Jumbos so far?
@@GutenGardening I have had mine since March, currently have 64 Jumbo's. I believe all quail will be a pain in the butt to clean, seriously the poop issue is HARD to care for! If you can get pass that (😂) they aren't too bad to raise. Super fast cage to table. Delicious, that's for sure 🤷
Just found your channel and subbed, I use the water bottles like you was showing that they creep as the birds move the cage floor, I stopped this by using 1" roof panel screws with rubber seal and washer. I put one screw directly in the middle pointing from the inside toward the outside then I place them to the rear of the cage about 3" from back and side so the birds can go around them without moving their water if bottles are nudged. in the feeders I use 2 screws (1 screw about 4" from both ends). Hope this helps stay safe and best wishes to you and yours.
Thank you for the advice. That is definitely an issue we are dealing with resulting in some spillage which is not ideal for the waste below. We would love to give this a look. Could you email us a picture, if you have time to contactgutenyardening@gmail.com? Thank you so much, and welcome!
It's shameful to keep quail in wire cages for their entire lives (be they short or long). Shameful. I would never keep any kind of poultry (and I have raised poultry of various kinds for 25 years) anywhere but in an outside run (netted, if they can fly out) or yard, and safely secured in a coop at night.
Our quail are like puppies and so intelligent, I didn’t know anyone kept them like this just in cages like battery hens. They love to go outside and scratch around and dust bathe and hide in the grass and twigs and get comfortable in a deep bed so I find it a bit sad they just have a cage to bash around the sides at and no life at all other than laying an egg. You also won’t get stress eggs or jelly eggs if the quail are stress free.
One of the challenges of the small space we have are these limits to where we can keep our quail. That being said, I agree with you. Ideally, outside with tons of room would be best.
I really like your cages but your feeders would drive me nuts for the adult birds. I use those red feeders only in my brooders along with the chick waterers. I think it's amazing how fast these birds grow up and produce eggs. I have about 140 birds now and they keep me busy but it is also relaxing to me to hear their songs.
Quail sounds are relaxing (except for the roos!). Our current watering and feeding setup is definitely not ideal and we are working to implement something much better. How long have you been raising quails? 140, that is a nice size covey!
@@GutenGardening LOL, I agree, NOT the Roos. I've been raising Quail now for about a year and love it. I'm always looking for a place to put another Quail cage and usually have 2 incubators running around the clock. The only real down side I've noticed is when we need to be away for a few days, I don't like to leave when I have a heat lamp still on in a brooder. Our feeders are good for about 3 or 4 days though before needing to be refilled.
When it matters they let you know. Sexual maturity makes it obvious. If you're raising for meat & eggs, It's just let them grow until the males all start acting like little jerks, u can just harvest all but however few males you need to keep. Send them away to freezer camp, then put the girls to work laying eggs. "Dexter's World" has the most amazing Quail videos (and rabbit too). You should check them out.
Quail need sandy dirt not only to bathe to help keep them cool but to eat. There feet don't need to be on wire all the time. It hard on them. Also in there sand I hide mealworms and seeds to give them something todo and my egg production is better. Also fresh grass.
I managed to hatch out 6 celadon coturnix chicks this spring. My ratios were horrible. Five males and only one single hen. I didn't find out about this until well into two months in. I knew I had one male. Then it was two. I started separating everyone because they were fighting. Eventually the first one I identified as a male attacked the last remaining quail I thougt was a hen. Ripped a big hole in his neck. The one actual hen got the back of her head torn up. So I separated her in with the other injured quail thinking they're both hens and they can heal and be reintroduced to their chosen male together. Then the one with the neck injury started crowing a week later. Since the two were already in together and there was no aggression I decided he would be my chosen rooster and culled the rest. Delicious by the way. I'm working on getting more hens now. Kenny is currently in the other room by himself crowing angrily. My husband trimmed his beak but every time without fail as soon as he's reintroduced to the hen he hurts her. She's not by herself. My bobwhite flock had the rooster and other hen take off on us so she's sharing a spacious cage with two bobwhite hens. They get along fine. The rooster is aggressive with all three of them but only hurts the coturnix hen. I'm desperately hoping getting more hens will help but if this continues he's dog food. I'll try again with a new rooster come spring.
We are currently working on an automatic watering system. With our size covey an automatic waterer system will save us a lot of time. Thank you for the suggestion. How large is your covey?
The neighbor thing is true... Mine found out and we ended up negotiating 100 eggs per month as hush money...😂😂😂 Fast forward 3 months he goes to his doctor appointment for the blood work and the doctor is shocked because the man's blood work is completely leveled out and he didn't prescribe anything.. 😮😮😮😮😮 my neighbor said quail eggs were the only thing he was doing different... the doctor did some research... conclude ng...whatever works keep it up... Of course we can't claim that this is going to make everybody more healthy but that's one case.... undeniably true..🎉
You won't be-LEAF what's on SALE!
Use link (bit.ly/3XzSCvT) and coupon code GUTEN to save an additional $10 off on qualifying orders.
GreenStalk Vertical Planters are on SALE AGAIN!
I raised quail 50 years ago and used plastic totes under the cages to catch the droppings feathers and any cracked eggs. The totes used deep bedding, about 10 inches, and earth worms to mix and compost everything down. Once established I used dry grass clippings to top things off. Other than that you only need to adjust the moisture.
What a brilliant idea! Thanks for sharing
This is exactly what my husband and I are doing right now, and keep wondering why everyone else uses trays. You're the first one we have seen that used bins underneath to do the deep litter method. Also worms! 😃
We use the breeze system for our cats, and altered it immediately to putting a deep litter box underneath it to use instead of the tray that comes with it. We put a charcoal liner at the bottom, then pine pellets (kiln dried) on top, and sprinkle in some food grade diatomaceous earth. It lasts a week or two before we have to empty it out, and put a new liner and pellets in. The liner makes it super easy to just fold each corner in and throw it all away. No muss, no fuss. 🙂 So, when we decided to start raising quail, we immediately knew we wanted to have the same type of set up. Especially, since we have them in a small extra bedroom in the house instead of outdoors. Whenever we are able to have them outside, we'll just let the droppings hit the ground, combine with wood ash and diatomaceous earth to keep any odor down, and use as compost. So much easier. Thank you for sharing your experience!
@PatriotGirl USA D.E. is a desiccant, won't it be counter productive used in compost as it is crystalline in form, which is how it kills insects - by slicing through their exoskeleton which allows all their moisture to dissipate, killing them. It will cut into your Earthworms as well (at least I can't imagine how it would not).
Very smart. Instead of fighting against poop, let nature work for poop. Nice one sir.
ive just taken away my last male and the difference is amazing , they had an hour of looking around for him then , peace came down, its totally different , the 3 females now , feed, chill and stretch out in the sun , totally relaxed , wish i had done it as soon as they matured
Why did you remove the males?
10:53 hey man you should consider using a magnet on the Bottom of the water bowl you can super glue it on and when the water level is low and birds are jumping around it will hold in place
I use the rabbit watering bottles. They learn real quick to use and saves on wasted water.
Please explain what exactly on the mouth piece that they can understand?? I've had a water bottle with the floating metal ball....and my 3 mature hens are not getting the hang of it. They are actually in a bird flight cage with ½in bars. Can anybody help?
I'm fairly new at this... just raised 3 hatchings that my daughter incubated from her quails eggs
I hand-picked my covey from all the babies. I'm currently getting 3 eggs a day, with lots of little ladies maturing soon.😊But the water situatiin is my quandary. I really struggle and def want to get them plenty of fresh water. Any ideas welcome ...commercial product or home grown invention. 😊thank yall.I
@@michelleg1225I put 2 forms of water in my cages. They came with a watering system that empties into a metal teat in each cage. They tap that and watter comes out into a cup below it. When I check the system I go by starting in the far upper cage working my way across to each teat and tap until watter starts coming out. They always get curious what my finger in doing, see the water in the cup and peck my finger or peck where my finger was to find that noise I made thst brought the water. This same tapping is similar to the tapping necessary to use the rabbit waterers. I use a rabbit waterer in each cage in addition to the waterinf system in case it takes one a while to learn or in case one thing runs out of water. When I had some in a plastic container, I always use a small chicken waterer and a rabbit waterer. Eventally these birds learn from each other. I have about 20 so there are morw examples. Hold the birds up to water, tap it with your finger and see if you can get them to catch a drip. If they could just find out what is in it.
@@michelleg1225 My quail must be smarter than yours 😛. I moved my 5 week old hens into a rabbit cage while I was cleaning their cage and next thing you know I heard the water bottle clicking and they all seemed obsessed with the shiny metal ball in the end the water bottle. I swapped my water system and never looked back.
@gjmottet I gave up LOL they're just using the bird water cups that came with the cage, and I change them every day. Those are my divas. Then 5 are in a rabbit hutch with a trough waterer elevated a little. We're in central Florida, so it's just vital that no one ever is without. They're all doing well. 9 hens, no males to bother them...and we get 6-8 eggs daily, so I think they're happy. I just have them aa pets; they're super spoiled... I let them have free time on our enclosed porch, and a couple of them will hang out on my lap. I've learned so much from this community on this channel. Quail people have turned out to be pretty nice and helpful, too.😉
They learn quick and love to play and explore, but they wasted all the water by playing with the little metal ball that make a clicking sound.
I see that this is months later but I figured I'd give a tip. Smear a thin coating of silicone on the bottom of your waterers or feeders and let it dry. It will give some friction on the cages to keep them in place better.
Most pets are an expense and a responsibility, quail are incredibly independent affectionate and clever if you teach them yourself plus they provide a protein source as a reward for your effort, I'd go as far as to suggest they are one of the best pet options on the planet for these reasons,, 2000 odd years of domestication has made them fantastic companions....
Well said! Thank you for joining us.
Charcoal dusting will control the smell.
is it even cost effective though (even at todays chicken egg prices) after buying equipment and birds?
I really love how you explain things. So clear and calm and fun at the same time.
Thank you so much! There is a lot we are learning about raising quail, and we hope to share it in a way others will want to listen to, so thank you so much for watching!
I use rabbit water that attach to side.. yes they learn quickly to drink from it
I prefer free fly ..can't stand any species that is farmed not kept as natural as possible. Its more time and Space consuming but just better for us all.I am sure you are doing your best but not for me
Good tip on dog crates from thrift stores, thanks
Absolutely! We are a year in with those greats, and they are groing strong. They are so easy to work with and modify. Good luck!
For just being at it for 8 months you have done well with this video - I hope we'll be hearing more from you as you move on in this endeavor.
I'm researching information about raising quails and appreciate you sharing your experiences 🤩!
Don’t copy his cage set up he has full on wire cage. He also has no hides or enrichment.
This was wonderfully informative. With the price of eggs and meat, I wonder if my family would be willing to give quail a try. Seems like they provide a good return on investment.
My only concern is slaughtering them. I'm... Not sure I'm up to the task. I could do everything after that, I'm not terribly squeamish... And I know that's where meat comes from, and have every respect for the farmers that do so.
I have been raising bobwhite quail for just over 2 years. I've had one male separated for about a year now because he is extremely aggressive toward both males and females. Today when I walked the pens I found an egg in with him. Full size egg. I haven't opened it yet. His pen is fully enclosed with 1/4" metal mesh. I'm absolutely confused. Color and markings are well defined bobwhite male. I have females and the difference is very obvious. Is it possible I have a female with very high levels of testosterone causing male coloration and extreme aggression? Please help.
We had a female duck that took on male characteristics after the loss of our male duck.
Absolutely, I have one girl who just can't get along and is very happy alone, or w a single male, strange but true...
Had decent results starting this year's batch of quails on soaked then fermented feed. Once they've learned that wet food is edible, the waste went down drastically. As a bonus they seem to be eating a lot less.
"Start them off with game bird feed ...starter" i thought this starter is for quails over 3-4 days old.
Maybe i can have a suggestion here ? In first days i mean from day 0 to day 3-4 i feed them with boiled quail eggs that i mash and push through a sieve with the help of a soup spoon for example so i have small granulation and i sprinkle some poppy from market on top. Poppy have a great composition of calcium, thiamine, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc so its good for bones and developing. This recipe for feeding never gave me any problem and i bread quails for some time now on small scale like 200-250 quails, less in winter because i live in the middle of Carpathian Mountains in Romania and its a cold region.
Sorry english is my 3rd language only, i try do my best :)
Thank you for sharing from Romania! I love hearing about other places. From Virginia, USA
@@michelleseay1960 U might try to use blender for the boiled eggs ... i didn't try it yet the idea just hit me yesterday seeing someone doing that. Seen a guy using older eggs he didn't eat or sell he was separating the egg shells from the egg put them couple minutes in oven to dry them then he put the eggs in a blender and then in the oven couple minutes and then put the egg shells and the eggs again together in a blender to chop it all small pieces and feed his quails with it. He said there is protein in it and its all good quails don't know its own eggs as long as its baked .
TRY A cheap shoe box with cover both of plastic, put a 1.5 inch hole x 8 into the container and leave the whole thing in the cage till time to fill. Your feed waste will drop to almost zero!~
Yes, this works very well, and I only place about 2 cups of feed in it so they can't fling it out of the holes. I just use the ones from Walmart, they are inexpensive. If they start pushing it around, just place a brick on top.
Those birds are way too crowded. Should have 1 bird per square foot for humane keeping.
I love the sounds they make. I find it so cool that they make a specific sound when they lay an egg.
Excellent video!!! I’m still finishing my “Terry” cages like yours. It was good to see some of your scalped quail and the back feathers. You don’t see that much on UA-cam and I would have had unrealistic expectations. Great information. I’ll watch it several times!!!
Thanks for the great content!!!
Thank you so much for this comment. The cages are great. We are working on solidifying a good watering system still. You are right, the birds look beautiful and "new" only for a short time. The reality is, even with a good roo to hen ratio, you will get some of that scalping. That being said, they are incredible animals, and I am sure you will enjoy raising them.
Excellent video and I appreciate your honesty! Thank you!
Chicken sounds when laying is overly obnoxious!!
Love love quail sounds❤️
Ha! That is awesome. Yes, we are big fans of quail music as well. 😀
Probably the best quail video I’ve seen. So much truth. I’d make the feed troffs a little deeper it helps with the splashing / raking affect. I’m using gallon milk jugs with 1-1/4 holes. I put a funnel on the top pour them full enough for my liking. For 6 birds I fill twice a week They like them you can see food level and free. The water supply is a gravity cup on outside of the cage they are rectangular and yellow from Amazon. They have 3/8” hose barb fittings so no clamps and they can’t walk on them.
6:13 The poor little quail girl that had to push _that_ monstrosity out . . .
Thank you for sharing amazing information, I appreciate it 😊
You are so welcome!
Lol.. what's your name? ... Tony... lol 😂 😆 🤣 I imagine mine cursing each other out.. yo mamma... yeah.. yo granny.. bish please... I wish a .... would..
😂🤣😅😆
Them roos of mine get fierce with the voices..
Good job on your video.
Exalant presentation honest, sincere with a backdrop of humidity.
Might I suggest a point 14 .
14 a discreet source of meat.
Quail, like rabbits can be raised discreetly away from prying eyes. If you choose to be private.
That is such a great point. Really, that is a huge benefit in urban settings as well. That was a selling point for us. Thank you so much! We are glad you enjoyed the video. We are definitely still learning.
They're LOUD.
You've just started and doing is the best education, but I noticed several of your cages have twice as many birds for their sizes as they should. 1-1.5 sq ft per bird is a good metric.
For daily Egg Production and Covey Size, follow our Quail Project in real time at: www.gutenyardening.com/self-sufficient-coturnix-quail
Q
Q
If there are weisel in your area your wires to big. I had same cage weisel went threw my pens and killed them. Happy farming anything bigger the a quarter.
Great video👍. I see you did your research on these and covered so much more than most other channels. I didn’t know how many nutrients are in quail waste. Awesome! Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experience with quail.
Glad it was helpful! Have you been following our quail egg production journey? Please let us know if you have additional questions, and we will be happy to share our experience.
Great. Our 16 quail are three weeks old today.
I am so sorry for the late reply! That is awesome! At this point, are you getting eggs? :)
Great content. Thank you. where is the best place to get feed? Online or nearest feed store.? what prices should I be looking for. if I bought several months' worth? Thank you for any help you can send my way. Or any advice from your followers. Blessing. M
Whenever I try to keep quail in cages like that they end up killing each other pretty quickly. Usually attacking and fatally injuring the head. I keep food and water at all times. I don't over crowd.
Pretty frustrated.
Did you ever look at growing your own meal worms?
Hey guten, for the watering, couldn't you just put a pin or two under the bottle and it will stay in place in the wire mesh?
how do u integrate a sand pit into those kind of cages ?
Where would I get Quail to begin...We have chickens and grow a garden each year...would love to raise quail for eggs and meat😊
I bought eggs online and hatched them in an incubator that I also bought online.
take a look at red wigglers as a way to process the waste
do not like the wire bottoms at all, it may keep cages clean but not nice for the birds feet, but that's my opinion
I get that completely. Our deep mulch cages seem to be much better for their feet.
I notice some of the quails are missing feathers on the back of their heads, I am assuming these are females. Maybe males are being too rough or may be too many males and not enough females in the same cage. Thank you for the very informational video!
From my experience young males are rough at the beginning. You can have 1 male to 4 even 5 females i wouldn't go to 6 if i want eggs constantly. In cases like yours if i have 3-4 females like yours i just put them together with an older male or leave them couple days without a male till they recover.
Best regards.
@@kalczarobertpretty sure quail are like chicken hens. You can have infinity females & get infinity eggs with absolutely no males involved at all.
Fact: the only thing the male is good for is fertilized eggs / making new birds. That's it. In my opinion those most aggressive things are good for the freezer ASAP once they get size.
@@MichaelSmith-ku7ki There is no way to compare hens with qauils.
Wire bottoms come on.
Our dog crates have deep mulch for them, and that is definitely better for their feet. And, when we can get them outside, that is best of all.
Why are they all crammed in small cages? Isn't it better to have two feet per bird so they're happier and healthier?
Great content but way too many ads, I don't think I can sit through that many ads per minute to watch more of your vids but great video!
All composting creates heat.
The term "hot" in bird waste means its so high in nitrogen it will burn the roots. Birds are omnivores.
When I had a bully Roo that started attacking everyone, I separated him for a few days so the others could heal and put another Roo in with him but he attacked him too so I butchered them both. I was saddened because he was the biggest and prettiest bird I had. It was for the best even though it diminished my small covey.
ive got the same problem at the moment , my aviary has gone from peaceful to mayhem. im wondering whether to dispatch both males
@@NOT_SURE.. I would dispatch any that are aggressive. I tried keeping one super bully by himself for a week and he just got meaner by the hour.
@@trishawhite9901 my no 2 male did go real grumpy for a few days, but he seems ok now , he skulks a lot and the 3 females are real friendly , come to the door when i turn up with grubs,.. he may have to go , hes crafty , he will hold a worm or gub in his mouth an offer it to the females and the one who takes it gets a 'struggle cuddle' haha, im going to wait for the first lot of eggs and see if they brood
Hello all, sorry for the very late reply. I am getting caught up on comments. We have had to dispatch several of our aggressive males. I have done a good bit of reading and watching videos about separating them, but we haven't really had luck with that. Myshire farms has some good info on this, though, so you might look to them as well.
@@trishawhite9901 i have created i male with 2 females and a lone female , who seems desperate to keep pout of the way of the others , twice a day the male will (i presume want to mate so theres mayhem for a few minutes) do you think i should take that male away , and just have 3 females ? surely that would be more peaceful?
Your videos are amazing and inspire me to try this! I have so many questions but let me start with this: can you feed the quail from your worm farm?
Thank you so much! Quail are definitely worth the try! I believe you should be able to feed them from your quail farm. They love bugs and worms, and even though we have not fed them from our vermiculture setup, I think we will do just that for a nice snack for them in the future. :) Please let us know what other questions you have, and we will do our best to answer. :)
@@GutenGardening My main questions are as follows: What temperature must the quail be at? I worry about feeding them over the winter but the ones in your garage seemed to take the cold well (I am on the PA/MD border so it's not as cold). How can you buy cages cheaply as I've found ones online I'd love to use but they're costly. At the same point, the expensive ones make it easy to feed/water them and easily take care of poop. Also, how does one sell quail eggs? Just an add on Craigslist or is it harder?
Hi I’m new to quails and I have those same cages I am desperately trying to find how to build the housing you have to set up my cages do you have a video on how you did your set up and the watered? I’d greatly appreciate the help thanks 🙏
Also, where did you get the trays? Please.
That is a great question! I don't believe I did a video myself on building the cages; however, I will link you to the video we used, and I can tell you we got the trays from Autozone.
This video was done by Coturnix Corner:
ua-cam.com/video/1cHY20GWyHg/v-deo.html
@@GutenGardening thank you 🙏
The rooster is a paid actor!😂
Sand is better. Thanks I learned a lot!
This video was extremely informational. I am extremely interested in raising quail. Super cool video
I like your video its very informative 👍
Recently got 11 coturnix quail they started laying as soon as I got them, I'm waiting for my incubator as I aim to achieve to be as productive as you
I've subscribed bro
That is exciting news! Where did you purchase your quails, and what brand of incubator did you purchase?
@@GutenGardening I got a mini II if that's what it's called it was only like 100 pound 💷
I got them from a farm where they were in fucking boxed cages now they can roam my garden and all sorts just hard getting them back in the pen lol
Any tips for getting more eggs? I'm getting like 6 a day with no artificial light and the days are shortening here
@@GutenGardening also 1 of them is laying pure blue eggs!! I thought it was ill just turns out to be super rare!
We discovered that our quail can use rabbit water bottles and it makes it easy to keep water clean. It use a reptile rack system in the house in the winter (we live in a place with -40F winters). It works well.
Since you spoke of Clemson made me wonder if you're in the SC area. We're in central SC and considering raising quail. Wonderful information you've shared, thank you!!
People should eat actual ducks and geese so they can figure out a way to make planes to space.
I know the coturnix quail grow fast and are egg laying machines, but I'm kinda small homestead and I like the Georgia Giant Bobwhite. They take almost twice as long to grow, but they live longer and raise their own babies in a big outside coop. My tiny chickens 😅
Amazing video! I have learned so much. Thank you for your effort.
We are so glad you enjoyed this video. Getting a comment like this is incredibly rewarding. We are learning a lot as well from raising our quail, so definitely stay tuned for more quail content in the near future.
Quail deserve space and solid ground to walk on to scratch around.
They love it and are much happier in a nice environment.. why not just buy battery eggs otherwise?
I put my waterer up on a tuna can, and wire it to a wall, no mess, no falling over!
Good overall quail keeping advice in one video. I have had similar experiences with quail raising. I like how you have emphasized the 'managing of biological waste' aka -poop-. It was my difficulty when starting. I have favoured the woodchip system only and not the metal container under the cage system. The second requires very frequent cleaning, but with the first you can leave for vacations and the poop situation will be ok when you return (and you can compost it outside in the garden). This was not emphasized enough in the first videos I watched when starting but it is in this video. Kudos for that.
🐣🐤🐥
"You can really taste the hope"
Very nice presentation. Very informative.
I have wild quails and they would eat the bird seeds on the ground, its like survival.
Wow! Thank you so much for such an informative video! I've been researching quail for about 6 months now so its safe to say I've watched dozens and dozens of quail videos on here. Your video is by far one of the best I've seen! I'm a huge fan of Myshire Farm (I'm getting my first live quail delivery from them this week!) and I have to say, this video definitely ranks up with Zach's videos! I really appreciate how much work you put into this video 💙 🐣🪶
Glad it was helpful! Good luck with your new arrival. We started raising quails just over 7 months ago, so you are not too far behind us! Where will you house the quails?
@@GutenGardening We've had our quail for 4 days now! We have a coop from tractor supply, its more of an aviary style and comes unfinished so that you can paint it yourself (we chose blue with white trim). The quail are only 3 weeks old so we've got a while till they start laying. I really wanted to give them ample room and they seem to love it! They're always running around, frolicking, chasing bugs, etc. I might make my own video on them as I really would love to share our journey
Sending full support new subscribers idol nice vedio
Welcome and thank you!
I enjoyed your video and look forward to the day I can get my own. I now have the incubator and am working towards getting 2 or 3 cages. Then I will be in the ballpark. Thank you for sharing.
You can do it!
I really enjoyed this video alot. I currently have 64 Jumbo's and more hatching this weekend 🤯
Do you go by age or weight when you dispatch? Do you leave skin on or off? I have dispatched several now but always super disappointed when an aggressive roo dresses out to 6oz lol.
Thank you so much! We are really learning as we go. We just dispatched about 15 of our roos, and we did it based on age instead of weight. We left the skin on, though that definitely take a bit longer to process them. I read somewhere you can use hot wax for feather removal, but that is not something we have tried yet. Good luck with your hatchings! How do you like the Jumbos so far?
@@GutenGardening I have had mine since March, currently have 64 Jumbo's. I believe all quail will be a pain in the butt to clean, seriously the poop issue is HARD to care for! If you can get pass that (😂) they aren't too bad to raise. Super fast cage to table. Delicious, that's for sure 🤷
Im till waiting for my quail to lay they are about 5-8 weeks old now (mixed)
Just found your channel and subbed, I use the water bottles like you was showing that they creep as the birds move the cage floor, I stopped this by using 1" roof panel screws with rubber seal and washer. I put one screw directly in the middle pointing from the inside toward the outside then I place them to the rear of the cage about 3" from back and side so the birds can go around them without moving their water if bottles are nudged. in the feeders I use 2 screws (1 screw about 4" from both ends). Hope this helps stay safe and best wishes to you and yours.
Thank you for the advice. That is definitely an issue we are dealing with resulting in some spillage which is not ideal for the waste below. We would love to give this a look. Could you email us a picture, if you have time to contactgutenyardening@gmail.com? Thank you so much, and welcome!
@@GutenGardening if you figure this method out would you please post a video showing us? Thanks.
What type/colors of quail do you have? I see maybe Autumn, pearl colors?
It's shameful to keep quail in wire cages for their entire lives (be they short or long). Shameful. I would never keep any kind of poultry (and I have raised poultry of various kinds for 25 years) anywhere but in an outside run (netted, if they can fly out) or yard, and safely secured in a coop at night.
Agree
I think you need to research quail more. They like smaller spaces and feel more safe. They are not chickens and their requirements are different.
One of my roos kinda sounds like a Lazer from starwars
Our quail are like puppies and so intelligent, I didn’t know anyone kept them like this just in cages like battery hens. They love to go outside and scratch around and dust bathe and hide in the grass and twigs and get comfortable in a deep bed so I find it a bit sad they just have a cage to bash around the sides at and no life at all other than laying an egg. You also won’t get stress eggs or jelly eggs if the quail are stress free.
One of the challenges of the small space we have are these limits to where we can keep our quail. That being said, I agree with you. Ideally, outside with tons of room would be best.
I wonder if you could feed them with a finch style feeder?
Clamp the waterer to the back in a quick release manner
Thank you for the suggestion. We will have to give a setup like that a try!
Can one grow quail in the warm tropics?
I pity your quail, wire cages hurt their feet your quail have no flat surface to rest. Your quail have no enrichment or hides.
15:30 you have it backwards. Nitrogen is hot. It'll burn your roots with too much nitrogen
Thank you!
I really like your cages but your feeders would drive me nuts for the adult birds. I use those red feeders only in my brooders along with the chick waterers. I think it's amazing how fast these birds grow up and produce eggs. I have about 140 birds now and they keep me busy but it is also relaxing to me to hear their songs.
Quail sounds are relaxing (except for the roos!). Our current watering and feeding setup is definitely not ideal and we are working to implement something much better. How long have you been raising quails? 140, that is a nice size covey!
@@GutenGardening LOL, I agree, NOT the Roos. I've been raising Quail now for about a year and love it. I'm always looking for a place to put another Quail cage and usually have 2 incubators running around the clock. The only real down side I've noticed is when we need to be away for a few days, I don't like to leave when I have a heat lamp still on in a brooder. Our feeders are good for about 3 or 4 days though before needing to be refilled.
We love the high level of detail! Thank you!
Do you eat a sick quail? Brand new on the quail raising, you are the second video I’ve watched. Thanks for the good instructions.
I personally wouldn’t
Best video I've ever see thank you
Thank you so much for watching! We really appreciate it.
Thank you for a very informative video. I do have one question.... how do you tell the males from female?
When it matters they let you know. Sexual maturity makes it obvious. If you're raising for meat & eggs, It's just let them grow until the males all start acting like little jerks, u can just harvest all but however few males you need to keep. Send them away to freezer camp, then put the girls to work laying eggs. "Dexter's World" has the most amazing Quail videos (and rabbit too). You should check them out.
The worst thing about Quail is how do you feed those damn things? Their uniquely demanding food requirements are ridiculous.
(I'm talking about sustainability in a food or economic crisis.)
Quail need sandy dirt not only to bathe to help keep them cool but to eat. There feet don't need to be on wire all the time. It hard on them. Also in there sand I hide mealworms and seeds to give them something todo and my egg production is better. Also fresh grass.
I'm planning on getting quail for eggs and meat. I'm having an outside avairy built so they can dust bath.
What shots do they need from the vet?
Are you kidding me?
I managed to hatch out 6 celadon coturnix chicks this spring. My ratios were horrible. Five males and only one single hen. I didn't find out about this until well into two months in. I knew I had one male. Then it was two. I started separating everyone because they were fighting. Eventually the first one I identified as a male attacked the last remaining quail I thougt was a hen. Ripped a big hole in his neck. The one actual hen got the back of her head torn up. So I separated her in with the other injured quail thinking they're both hens and they can heal and be reintroduced to their chosen male together. Then the one with the neck injury started crowing a week later. Since the two were already in together and there was no aggression I decided he would be my chosen rooster and culled the rest. Delicious by the way. I'm working on getting more hens now. Kenny is currently in the other room by himself crowing angrily. My husband trimmed his beak but every time without fail as soon as he's reintroduced to the hen he hurts her. She's not by herself. My bobwhite flock had the rooster and other hen take off on us so she's sharing a spacious cage with two bobwhite hens. They get along fine. The rooster is aggressive with all three of them but only hurts the coturnix hen. I'm desperately hoping getting more hens will help but if this continues he's dog food. I'll try again with a new rooster come spring.
You should try some of the larger sized water bases. Paradoxically mine get less stuff in the larger bases.
We are currently working on an automatic watering system. With our size covey an automatic waterer system will save us a lot of time.
Thank you for the suggestion. How large is your covey?
I hatched my first quail 3 weeks ago. I have 26. I haven’t tried to sex them yet. I am planning an automatic water system too.
@@markdandeneau2904 Awesome! Did you use local eggs or get them in the mail?
Full of great info. 👍
Glad it was helpful!
How long does one bag of feed last you with 100 quail?
A quail is consuming approximately 18-22 grams of food/day. That bag would last bout 8 and half days for 100 quails.
The neighbor thing is true... Mine found out and we ended up negotiating 100 eggs per month as hush money...😂😂😂
Fast forward 3 months he goes to his doctor appointment for the blood work and the doctor is shocked because the man's blood work is completely leveled out and he didn't prescribe anything..
😮😮😮😮😮 my neighbor said quail eggs were the only thing he was doing different...
the doctor did some research... conclude ng...whatever works keep it up... Of course we can't claim that this is going to make everybody more healthy but that's one case.... undeniably true..🎉
Wow! Crazy that the rooster crowed right on command! :'D
Those roosters love to crow, and I appreciated the perfect timing :)
That first sound means one of the females are angry 😅
We have had to remove a few males on occasion to keep them happy.
Very interesting!!!
Thank you so much!
Do they ever get out of those cages?