building a cage for quail

NotTheMomma

Songster
10 Years
Mar 31, 2009
965
11
141
Virginia is for Chick Lovers!
Can someone please help me? I bought some 1/4'' (one roll of 10 ft), and 1/2'' (2 rolls of 10 ft) hardware cloth to make me a quail cage. I have 2x4's I can frame it with. What do you use to connect the wire? Are there special wire clamps? I've seen some cages where there was no wood used at all. Completely wire framed, and wire cages. How can that be? What was used to make the hinges on the doors then?

See I want to go as safe as possible, but also easy. I'll be doing this myself as DH doesn't have time to help me at all this weekend. He's working on the tractor putting freon in the van, etc. So... can someone help me out? Direct me to some plans or something?Did I buy the right kind of wire? Its only 2 ft tall... should I Have gotten the 4 ft?

Now, another question, I was thinking of mounting the cage onto the outside of my chicken coop. That way it would be protected on one side from the weather, and also make it up high so nothing could get them. I was thinking of mounting it on the side of the coop that also have has the chicken's run. That way something would have to go through the chain lok fence, and chicken wire before it got to the quail. The poop would fall into the chicken's run... would that be a problem? Also their food that they waste would fall down to the chickens. Would the quail food hurt the chickens? And since at this point, I'm not planning on eating the quail anyway, could I put them on the ground and let them kinda range with the chickens? Or make them an aviary setting, and they could be on the ground. I'm having a huge problem with keepiing them on wire all the time.

They are bobwhites, and they would naturally be on the ground, foraging, and making their nests.

I'm so confused! So overwhelmed, and so very tired!!! I'm heading to bed now!!! Look at the time! It's 4:30am and I'm just now finishing up the day. Too much to do, and just not enough time!

Plus my garden is in, and stuff has to be picked on time.

I'm loving it all, but so very tired.

Can someone please help me so I won't be so confused about this quail pen?

Thank you so much for reading all of this! You must be a saint!
 
I've made one cage that you speak of. They make what's called cage clips that you use to connect the hardware cloth. I don't know if they make them for 1/4 inch size though. I used 1/2" X 1" cloth The clips will work on 1/2" cloth or larger. Anyway I made the sides of the cage in 1 solid piece.
Then clipped the edges of 1 corner together. The top and bottom then clips to the sides..
(I hope that makes sense)
I wish I had a picture of it. Perhaps I can remember to get one today and post it.

You have to use a special pliers to close the cage clips but they are not expensive. I tried to find the clips at Lowes where I bought the hardware cloth but they don't carry them. I have found them at TSC and Southern States, as well as the pliers.

Hope that helps,
David
 
If you are framing the cage from wood just use U-nails. Available at any hardware store.

A full wire cage is easy to build if you get a few tools.
This site should help: http://www.bassequipment.com/Cages/Cage+Assembly+Tools/default.aspx

Wire
gauge (thickness) is very important when you don't have any other framing for strength.

I use the J clips to attach wire to wire. Like David said, 1/4" might require something special.... don't really know. I don't have any 1/4" wire to try with my clips, sorry.
 
hello, if your getting bobwhite, are they going to be for pets or meat, eggs ectt??? if they going to be for pets bobwhites are flighty and tend to want a big flight pen for them 2 feet doesnt seem really high for them but will work for other types of quail, is there going to be wire on the floor? or is the cage going to be on th eground?
 
The cages that you spoke of that have no wood are made of a much thicker type of wire, not just hardware cloth. Those are held together by clips, or curled wire, and the hinges for the door are just more clips.

I don't know if a 2' cage would be high enough for bobwhites, they like to roost when they sleep. Of course, if they had no choice it would be fine, I personally would want something taller
roll.png


I wouldn't let them actually range with the chickens, but you could make an aviary of sorts for them, I'm sure they would love that!!

The quail food won't hurt the chickens, I feed some to my moochers when I'm feeding the quail, just so they'll leave me alone!
lau.gif


I would go with an aviary setting for bobwhites, they need much more space than coturnix do.
 
Thank you all so very much!! DH and I just talked about it, after having the info from you all, and we're going to build an aviary for them! It will attach to the chicken lot, with a door going into the quail aviary, and no 'outside' door, so less chance of something getting them. We're going to buy some 4ft' wire to go with what I"ve gotten to make it 6ft tall so they have room to fly a bit. And going to build a wooden box with a perch inside for them to go into at night, or if the weather is bad. Maybe a 4 ft tall box, with a part of the roof lifting up so we can check for eggs.

Our goal is to have them more or less for pets, and to try to encourage them to hatch some eggs. Which I realize might be difficult since it's been bred out of them by the hatcheries. Then we're in the process of getting a license for them, so we can integrate with the wild quail that have shown up here! No quail until we got ours and now we've seen them in the yard, and here them every evening.

If the population builds, we'll try eating some quail, and quail eggs. Maybe even sell some, who knows. That's long term goals.

So anyone think this will work now?

Oh, and we'll keep them on a regular worming schedule to help with that until hopefully the build up resistance, immunity or whatver the wild quail have that help them from getting worms!
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom