chicken coop

BatonRouge Bill

Timer is so short on the edit button. But to answer your questions Chelle they make less noise than chickens and the noise that the male makes I definitely wouldn't call crowing. And I sleep 6 hours a night and so can the birds! Lights out pretty much ends it but I had both quail and chickens crow at night. But just a couple of crazy birds. Also the Japanese quail are the fast growers while the Jumbo bobwhite get bigger but take longer to growout. The bobwhite are more much more prone to seasonal egg laying. The bobwhite not nearly as domesticated as the Cortinix, Japanese all around the better choice.
Dan, about 8 weeks is a good time to eat the males, And you have to cull them anyway to get a 4-5 hen per male ratio. Too many males upsets the hens.
Also quail are messy eaters, so if the quail cage is in the chicken pen the chickens will eat the spilled high protein game bird feed.

BatonRouge Bill

BatonRouge Bill wrote:

:evil: I should have popped that possum. Thats two for him! Set live trap baited with two dead catfish from the ap system

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I wrapped the dogpen in 1" chicken wire and tarped the top. Hopfully I won't loose anymore.

I popped him last night with the .25 cal. Berretta! :twisted:

Again gunshot in the night. Glad it's close to the 4th! no cops

BatonRouge Bill

Ducklings are starting to hatchout. I candled them last night and 2 out of 4 eggs I checked had moving ducklings. 1 unfertilized and the other??? I guess I should hope for 6 to 8 of the 12 eggs to hatch.
Thats one I didn't completly think thru. I just love duck breast meat.

Cyara

BatonRouge Bill wrote:

Also quail are messy eaters, so if the quail cage is in the chicken pen the chickens will eat the spilled high protein game bird feed.

Thanks BRB. Will go with Japanese Quail then. You say the quail cage in the chicken pen is a good idea.... but not freely roaming together? Sorry for all the questions... got me good and interested.

DanDMan

Messy eaters means waste.. Could place them over a tilapia pond. Other countries do it.

8 week to dinner, thats not not bad. I know some people who raise meat chickens that are processed at 6 to 8 weeks. They have been bread for meat. Im not so sure I want another project right now, I mean I already have chickens, cows, and fish.. But still.. Its tempting to give quail a try..

Cyara

No point raising them primarily for eggs really... so small... 10g....a large chicken egg is said to be about 57g. But as poultry they really look like an impressive option.

Putting them over tilapia might be a good idea. My new pond will be close to my food forest and so might let them in there to scratch for bugs and put them back safe each night. I wondered how they would handle the cold over water in winter. Found this....

Quote:

Changes in plasma, liver and muscle metabolite levels in Japanese quail exposed to different cold stress situations
Summary
1. Adult Japanese quail, fedad libitum, were subjected to different conditions of cold exposure and winter acclimatization, after which the concentrations of the principal lipid and carbohydrate metabolites were measured in the plasma, liver and muscle.
2. Cold exposure (3.5°C) for two hours produced a marked liver glycogenolysis, but muscle glycogen, plasma glucose and plasma free fatty acid concentrations remained unchanged.
3. Cold exposure (3.5°C) for 21 days produced no change in the concentration of plasma glucose, plasma free fatty acids, muscle and liver glycogen, but the food consumption of quail increased, and quail maintained their body weight.
4. Acute cold exposure (–18°C) for 30 minutes produced hypothermia, marked glycogenolysis in muscle and liver, and increased mobilization of plasma free fatty acids. This was also accompanied by hypoglycaemia in quail which were partially defeathered.
5. Winter acclimatized quail showed a significant hyperglycaemia and a lower plasma free fatty acid concentration, but the levels of muscle and liver glycogen were similar to those of controls.
6. Changes in the concentration of these parameters are discussed in relation to thermogenesis in birds in cold environments.

http://www.springerlink.com/content/g20j137k47402q03/

Actually much like French Angora rabbits. Will have to offer temperature protection if go lower than 3*C. I might then just put a second storey in the hen-house to cage them there overnight in deep winter. On occasion we have been known to go to zero degrees.

This looks like a pretty easy way to raise extra protein...

Have you ever eaten the eggs BRB?

BatonRouge Bill

Cyara wrote:

No point raising them primarily for eggs really... so small... 10g....a large chicken egg is said to be about 57g. But as poultry they really look like an impressive option.

Putting them over tilapia might be a good idea. My new pond will be close to my food forest and so might let them in there to scratch for bugs and put them back safe each night. I wondered how they would handle the cold over water in winter. Found this...

Actually much like French Angora rabbits. Will have to offer temperature protection if go lower than 3*C. I might then just put a second storey in the hen-house to cage them there overnight in deep winter. On occasion we have been known to go to zero degrees.

This looks like a pretty easy way to raise extra protein...

Have you ever eaten the eggs BRB?

The primary reason for raising quail is the meat. It can be cooked so may ways a good secondary reason is the eggs. These are normally pickled. And yes I do eat them but only pickled. The eggs are a perfect size to soak up seasoning all the way thru, while the larger chicken eggs will soak in about 1/4 the way in. I have a simple but good receipe I will post in the fish receipe area.
As far as the cold in winter goes my last cage had a 3W'x3L'x2'H plywood box with a small 6"x6" shower curtain door on the south side that opened into the open wire area which was 6L'x3'W. The quail didn't lay in winter and I kept a light in the box to keep them warm. But as soon as spring started rolling in they would start laying again.
And as far as the spillage goes the chickens don't seem to mind scratching in quail poo for the higher protein food. They prefer it to cracked corn.

Chappo

Cyara, The eggs are very nice ,, I first tried them in Vietnam. I was sitting at a table and there where these strange speckled round things placed in front of me ,, obviously a pre-meal snack. At first I thought they may be some type of "mint Lolly' ???? My Vietnamese at that time was limited to a few hundred words , so UMMMM how to ask?. A second dish arrived ,, it was a mixture of salt and pepper with a piece of Lime on the side. That blew the Mint Lolly theory ..... HMMMM I know just grab one and bite it ..... AHHHH it's got a shell ,, it's a friggen egg.
Long story ,, but yes Quail eggs are nice and actually quite profitable ,, they are selling at a high price because have become very trendy to use them in upper class restaurants.

BatonRouge Bill

When I said I only eat the quail eggs pickled, that not accurate. It's the only way I'ved cooked them. My brother adds them to spegetti and meat sauce, like meatballs. A few broke up helps knock the acid off of the tomato sauce.

Cyara

OK. Will consider the eggs as important too.

Never thought to pickle them. Will go look for your recipe BRB. Super. Thanks.

A restaurant delicacy.... neat. Served with salt, pepper and lime. Does sound pretty good Chappo. I hope the ones I end up with have unusual shells and not just plain white. Too cool.

Chappo

The eggs are always spotted grey/white etc ..... as far as I know.
The restaurants use them in masny ways ..... often fried and placed on top of a trendy little dish of food ,, you know the places ,, you pay BIG money get a BIG plate and a tinyt little piece of food is there with some sauce painted around the edge:)

Cyara

That's the kind of restaurant I need to sell to!

Went looking... and found a site dedicated to quail egg recipes

http://www.quail-egg-recipes.com/

Chappo

The eggs are selling here in Sydney at about 20 rand per dozen.
The cleaned birds at about 30 Rand each ..... yes there is profit in these little super-stars

Cyara

Amazing. Is that pickled or fresh, Chappo?

BatonRouge Bill

Definitely cannot keep baby quail with chickens! As quick as the little kamakazi's jump out the cage the chickens get them like junebugs. I need to make cage door higher! They rush the door as soon as it's opened! Some even managed to escape thru opening for dropping pan which is plugged up now. I don't know how many the chickens got that jumped out of the opening but that is an education I wish the chickens didn't get!

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chicken coop

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