Button Quail?

[pajaro42]

Hello everyone, I have two questions about button quail.

The first is does anyone know where I can buy a few chicks? I would buy eggs, however, due to where I live, I can't keep many of the birds. My fear with the eggs is too many will hatch, and then what will I do with them? I have found the cyberquail.com breeder directory and have been sending out emails to the places listed there. However, with the people I sent emails to, either one of three things has been happening.
1) My email bounces back
2) They don't answer
or 3) They don't sell button quail chicks anymore.
I must say, it's rather disheartening.

My second question is, can you keep button quail in the same cage as diamond doves? I am definitely, at some point, going to get the quail, but my uncle may be looking to get rid a diamond dove or two. If he does decide to get rid of them, I would love to take them, but should I buy a separate cage for them?

 

[GrandmaBird]

You will not be able to have chicks shipped to you so you will need to find someone local who would sell chicks and then the need to be in a brooder for 7-10 weeks. You should be able to post an ad on craigslist or here that says where you are and that you want young birds, preferably a male female pair. They do best if kept in single pairs wither you want to breed or not. You can keep them in a cage with diamond doves or other soft billed birds but be warned they need a solid floor not wire as they have very tiny feet and the wire can and will hurt them. I use non skid shelf liner over the wire and it works great it can be removed and washed. I also cover it with aspen shavings, do not use cedar. Be sure the cage has less then 1/2 inch spacing or they will get out.
AS for buying them some breeders will ship adult birds so that is one way to go. You can ask to join our group on facebook it is button quail.
some have them for sale on there. or try

www.brackenridgeranch.com Jodi McDonald, she also sells a great book about them

 

[pajaro42]

Thank you for the information, but unfortunately, there's no breeder near where I live. I guess chicks are out of the question. Oh well, that's just the way things work sometimes. I am glad they can be kept in the same cage as a diamond dove though, and no worries, my cage doesn't have a wire floor. I made sure of that when I was buying it. Also, for the shavings, I was planning on using pine instead of aspen. is pine okay for them?

 

[GrandmaBird]

pine is okay for them. I did forget to mention that the quail need game bird feed not just bird seed. they need a high protein feed. It is sold in 50 pound bags so you will have a lot at first but they can really toss it around. I place some into gallon zipper baggies and keep it in the freezer. I also run it in the blender (a really cheap one bought for animal use only) if the pieces look very big, just do not turn it into a powder or they might not eat it at all. You can feed them cooked chicken or quail eggs, veggies diced up really tiny and mine love the green flowerie tops of broccoli. You will find they will love corn and fruit as well. NO chocolate or avocado and no apple seeds, the skin and flesh of the apple are fine.
hope this helps a bit and isn't too confusing!
good luck

 

[pajaro42]

I don't think it's confusing at all, and I really do appreciate all the information. I had no idea that button quail enjoyed fruit! I actually did manage to find someone reasonably close that is selling button quail, so I'm hoping to be able to have a pair by as early as next week! I'll definitely have to do some careful experimenting to see what they like.

 

[GrandmaBird]

Most important is fresh cool water and high protein feed. good luck!

 

[pajaro42]

Unfortunately, I still don't have my quail (it's looking like I may have to wait until next month by this point), but now I have another question. Can adult button quail be fed chick starter? Specifically, this is what I'm looking to get: http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/dumorreg;-poultry-chick-starter-24%-10-lb
It doesn't appear to be medicated, and it is high in protein.

 

[idahochicka]

I just put 9 Button Quail eggs in the incubator today. Picked them up from a friend of mine who is WAY into birds. He has about 30 chicks that just hatched out yesterday. They are the cutest things I have ever seen!! He feeds his the wild game bird feed and puts it in a coffee grinder so they can eat it. They are so small he says they cant eat it unless he grinds its up.

 

[GrandmaBird]

that feed looks fine for the adults but you would need to grind it a bit for the chicks. do not make it into a powder. you can put it into a baggie and try smashing it with a rolling pin or can of soup or other food item.
do give the adults more protein by way of boiled mashed chicken egg or insects. also be sure the females get oyster shell and that both get sand or grit. They love to take a sand bath as they do not take water baths.
enjoy these little guys they are too much fun.

 

[pajaro42]

Thanks for the replies. I definitely will grind the feed as the pieces look a little large for adults let alone chicks. I also have dried mealworms to give them as a bit of a protein supplement.