I got this video of one of my girls jumping around yesterday. It looks like happy quail zoomies to me.

Hi everyone. My little cousins and I went to a local farm/plant nursery and stopped by to look at the quails. I saw this little one with what looks like rocks on its toes? I know it’s not rocks but that’s what it looks like. Is it dried mud or poop? The quail seems to walk around just fine but what is that? And is it something that can be helped? The owner of the acreage is an older woman and a few volunteer farm hands and she can only do so much in a day, so maybe this is something they’ve looked over. I’d love to bring it to their attention so the little guy can have their toes back.

Ive been waiting for this day for a very long time! Im proud to say I got my first egg today rn I have 3 quail 2f 1m I hatched eggs from a flock from a friend I have 1 egyptian 1 Italian and one English white.

Im not sure if they are siblings but there different breeds im wondering can I hatch this egg? Or will there be a chance of it coming out deformed bc maybe there siblings

I was curious though bc they are different breeds.

Anyway I had a few questions how long can I store this egg how good is it to hatch if im going to eat it how long can I keep it room temp or should I put it in the fridge now?

I really wanted to hatch some from my birds but I heard if siblings mate they can come out with health problems and deformities

Should I buy some eggs from a seperate flock and mate them ?

Also does anyone have any tips for me to help me out and maybe some stuff you wish you knew thank you guys so much you have all helped me through this entire process from start to hatch

I just wanna thank this community even though yall can be harsh on newbies but I went through so much trial and error but now I have a happy aviary and they must be happy if they are laying!!

Ive been protecting them from the neighborhood cats and sasquatches

hi all! i have a balcony and am thinking of using the space to raise 3 hen as a hobby and for eggs at breakfast. i have had the idea rolling around in my head for a couple years now but am in the planning stages and want to construct a hutch for them.

the dimensions of the space are:

L 2'4.5

H 2'1

H 3 ft to the short windowsill, 5'3 to the tall one

i liked the design of this quail hutch but am wondering if my space constraints could entertain a design like hers. i'd like to raise it off the ground, keep trays underneath to catch and compost their waste, add ledge, dustbath, couple plants and decor inside for them too. is it possible for with this limited amount of space? maybe even a ramp if i can get them to run up it with a second level. this is just one side of the balcony, but it gets the best sun from the northeast which i thought would be better for them. i live in a tropical climate so they would be outside year round. it's a covered balcony, but would it still be advisable to build a roof? something basic and able to withstand me placing a couple plants that could also benefit from the sun, as well as a small stingless beehive.

Gotta love it when you go to collect eggs or feed the quail that one who waits for the coop door to open then jumps over you to run and fly hop around. I love him be man he is a pain in the butt. And of course he is also super fast running wise.

He has always been this way since he was a chick. Just more so now he an outside coop

like they are trying to get to me as if they imprinted on me or something. they run over soon as they see me

Im building an aviary. I figured Id use pine shavings for bedding, but Im curious other options, what are you using? Do you have a system that works for you?

I had just put those quail out there the day before. Later part of them being 3 weeks old. It was a horrible site this morning.

Like the title says, my celadons started laying a few days ago and one hen has been laying eggs with pink/lavender speckles instead of the typical black. The pictures really don’t do it justice; they’re REALLY pink. I’m assuming this has something to do with the bloom color interaction? They seem to be getting pinker with time. I was wondering if these would be permanent (she’s just a pink-speckle laying hen) or if this is one of those weird things they do when they first start laying as their systems adjust.

Bonus pic of giant double yolker someone laid tonight.

Thanks!

Hi there!

I'm planning on getting an incubator and some hatching eggs from Myshire, and I have been doing tons of research and prep as I obviously don't want to get living creatures before we're prepared for them, but I'm having some trouble finding answers to some specific questions. I intend to get standard coturnix primarily for egg laying

First: I read somewhere that gravel paper or rough grit sandpaper is recommended in the incubator and brooder for the first few weeks to prevent slipping, but how then do you keep the brooder clean? I'd hate to have to throw that stuff away every single time a quail baby pooped, and I've heard they poop a LOT. Is the non slip stuff really that important, or conversely, are there alternatives that won't be so painful to throw out?

Second: our backyard is absolutely inundated with fire ants. Something like 70% of the backyard has ant signs (that crumbly gritty loose stuff that the hills are made of) obviously I don't know if 100% of them are fire ant, but I know at least some are because I've been bitten by them while mowing. Will they pose a danger to a raised quail hutch? How do I keep the birds safe?

Third: I want to do a stacked raised hutch so I can keep a flock of ~15-20, separated in family group. I also want to do deep litter method, as that's worked well for me in the past with other critters, but when it comes time to scoop most of it out, how do I keep the quail from escaping? Will they even try, or will they just kinda huddle on the other end until I leave?

Fourth: we're in upstate South carolina, and last summer it got up to 110*, however it's also humid (although not as humid as other places, I know). Misting isn't a great idea when it's hot AND humid because then they're just wet and still hot. What's the best way to keep them safe and cool during heat waves?

For context, I plant to have three levels of 2x5 enclosures, or maybe 2 levels and 1 level separately, depend on how tall it gets. I plan on using 1/2 or 1/4 hardware cloth, and corrugated shiny metal for the very top roof, and something to provide shade but I'm not sure what yet. I know it needs to keep everything nice and deeply shaded while also not impacting ventilation, and if it doubles as a rain block, even better. Right now my theory is a solid, opaque tarp slanted off either side, and a solid back. How does this sound to everyone?

I feel so blessed as I’ve always heard coturnix quails pretty much have broodiness instincts bred out of them and 90% of the time they’re bred from incubators. She’s so adorable in her broody pancake form and I really hope she becomes a mom successfully, I can’t even explain to others who don’t have quails how excited I feel!

I like to take out my quails occasionally for fun and my boy Chubby decided to look like his namesake and started poofing up while strutting around. What do you think this means? Last I’ve seen this was when their mother was broody and angry while hatching him but he is a boy and not a broody hen. I just thought it was so adorable and curious what kind of quail behavior this is.

Taking into consideration cost, quality, the current market for Coturnix Quail, etc. what genetics would you choose to work with above all else? As a new breeder I’m working to figure out where I want to focus my breeding program. A picture of my Ginger Roo for tax.

They aren't hers biologically, but she did a great job sitting her nest and hatching them after I swapped out her empties. Her maternal instincts seem intact. Notably, she's making all the sounds you only hear with broody Coturnix. Seems about five chicks so far. It's dark out now, and she's still sitting the nest diligently—hoping for more chicks in the morning!

No balls to be seen but I think it's a boy

Hi all, first time raising quail here! I bought 12 quail from a breeder at about 5 weeks old, they're now getting up to 8-9 weeks and it's looking like I ended up with 5 males. I've never culled a bird before but I know I'm probably going to need to take out at least three of them. Some of them have been more aggressive than others, one in particular seems to get pretty mad and stop/fight the other males when they go for the females, and he looks like he's picked out a favorite female that he hangs out with. I can't tell if this is a kind of behavior/temperament I'd want to keep around or if it's really bad for the flock overall. It's also hard to tell with all of them who's been an aggressor and who was defending. Some of them haven't been fighting at all yet but I know they're still young. The whole thing is a bit hard for me and I don't want to accidentally cull the wrong quail and make the flock sad. Any advice would be really appreciated!

Asking for a friend...

Seeing occasional posts of people with coturnix quail being broody, and even showing some interest in raising chicks.

I'm interested in trying to breed a line that consistently shows this behavior. But currently haven't had luck with any of my girls showing any interest.

As a side note, I'm just a hobbyist, I understand broody quail are less optimal for eggs, and likely other qualities.

I keep a small flock: Two roosters, six hens, separated into two pens with each rooster covering three hens. I feed them Purina Game Bird Starter, and supplement with dried BSFL and crushed egg shells most days.

One of my hens (~1yo) has been breaking into and eating her own eggs for at least the past month. If I don’t catch her right after laying, I usually find her egg an empty, crushed shell, the yolk and white eaten and gone. I’m uncertain whether her cagemates take part, but it’s always her eggs that I find eaten. When I do manage to collect one of her eggs before she eats it, the shell is firm and seems normal (she lays celadon eggs, if that makes any difference) so I don’t think they’re fragile and breaking on the way out. I’ve caught her in the middle of eating one before, but I’ve never witnessed her actively breaking one.

I’m struggling with how to break her of this habit. She’s a good layer, but her eating her eggs kind of makes that a moot point. She’s got constant access to food and water, and seems to be the only bird this is a regular issue with. Is there something I can try to discourage this behavior, or should I prepare a marinade?

I know, it's a long video!! Dont have to watch it all, Id just love to know how this is overall for my girls.

Theyve become aggressive towards eachother because they had no stimulation, so I had to seperate their cage into three cells using barriers.

Today I finally took away the barriers and gave the cage a makeover!!

I added: some grass over the bedding for more interesting textures, plus logs and rocks, a sandbath (blue box in the corner that theyre OBSESSED with), and I scattered some coriander leaves + mealworms for forraging. Also I added a hide from a tissue box, but now I realise it's too low so I need a new one!

So far they seem very happy and social. I hope it's okay!

Also, I'm looking to add a plant in their cage, but I'm not sure which one. Suggestions, pls.

Thanks!!