Shinto Dragon Jumbo Coturnix Project

[SimonGrow]

Anyone using reciprocal recurrent selection for their breeding program? I think this article may have been posted in another thread.
http://www.medwelljournals.com/fulltext/?doi=javaa.2009.962.970

Simon

 

[dc3085]

Meal worms are really high in fat, its typically recommended to feed 2-3 large meal worms to an adult quail per day as a maximum. If you want see the nutrional value of insects you can usually find them on reptile or lizard forums.

Another thing to take care of is that you cut the meal worms for chicks since they look like quail toes it can develop a habit of them picking at each others feet

 

[SimonGrow]

Dc3085, thanks for the information! I'll cut back on the mealworms and be sure to crush them so they don't look like quail feet.

I have put crushed oyster shells in with their food but I think the pieces are too large for the quail to eat so I've also been crushing the dried egg shells they hatch out of and feeding it back to them.

I stopped handling my quail for a few days and all of a sudden they are a bit skittish around me.

Simon

 

[Sill]

You might want to check out the thread on fermented feed for quail as it ups the nutritional content of the feed. It's in my signature and there are many other threads about fermented feed for other types of birds as well.

I brood and house all my birds outdoors so they get optimum D3 exposure. If you house indoors they need full spectrum lighting or D3 supplementation in their feed.

Good luck working with sizable birds. I went back to a moderate size quail after I kept getting foot and other problems with the larger birds, especially as they age. Anything over 14 ounces is just too much bird for their feet. Unless maybe you address that problem in your breeding endeavors? Now that would be something! It will be interesting to see your progress.

 

[SimonGrow]

Thanks for the information sill! I'll look into the fermented feed. I'm starting to rethink my goal of an extra large bird and I believe I want to work more towards a large bird maxing out around 14 oz but with good structure and fewer leg issues.

I wonder if keeping large birds on the ground in a large outdoor flight/ run will cut down on leg issues? I figure if they walk and get more exercise, their leg muscles will be more capable of holding up the weight of their body.

I read an article somewhere that suggested more exercise and more weight load on joints, bones and muscles may help develope stronger bones. My issue is that I live on a very small plot of land in the city and I don't have room to build a run. I'm also worried about my birds getting worms foraging on the ground. If I can't diet and breed my way to a healthier large bird, I will aim towards the largest size healthy bird I can attain and then slowly work the weight up while having a healthy bird capable of walking as my number one selection criteria.

I would really like a bird that can walk fine and be healthy at 1 year of age. Thanks again for all the suggestions! The community here on BYC is awesome! I already have several of my coworkers interested in quail and I believe I may be able to leverage them to help me with my project. I don't have much space but if each one of my friends helps me maintain one of my lines, it may just work.

Simon

 

[DK newbie]

If you are worried about worms and don't really have room for a large run, but want some of the benefits from keeping them on dirt, perhaps you should consider building as large cages as you have room for, and keeping them on sand? I'm not sure how well this will work with coturnix, you might need to clean it all the time. I only have buttons on sand. But it's really easy to clean with a cat litter type shovel and if the birds are so heavy their feet get sore from wire, sand might help.

 

[SimonGrow]

Thanks for the suggestion DK newbie. I recently transferred my birds from their brooder to battery breeder cages from Georgia Quail Farms. The nice thing about the wire bottoms on the GQF cages is that it is coated with some sort of plastic which might make it easier on my birds feet. I do a lot of gardening so the droppings trays are very useful for collecting my fertilizer.

I could do as you suggested and just dump the sand on top of my plants, thanks again for the suggestion!

Simon

 

[SimonGrow]

Here is a quick 21 day plus 4 hour update. My largest quail is 158 grams and the average weight is 136 grams with a low weight of 122 grams. I didn't weigh all the birds this time because when I put one bird back inside the cage, they ran around in circles and I couldn't tell one bird from another. The average weight will probably go down a bit if I were to weigh all the birds.

Simon

 

[Sill]

Thanks for the suggestion DK newbie. I recently transferred my birds from their brooder to battery breeder cages from Georgia Quail Farms. The nice thing about the wire bottoms on the GQF cages is that it is coated with some sort of plastic which might make it easier on my birds feet. I do a lot of gardening so the droppings trays are very useful for collecting my fertilizer.

I could do as you suggested and just dump the sand on top of my plants, thanks again for the suggestion!

Simon

Make sure you compost those droppings before you put them on your plants. Quail manure is a "hot" manure and will burn your plants unless it's well composted. That said it's a wonderful addition to a compost bin or pile. It will heat things up and turn into black gold for your garden.

 

[SimonGrow]

Thanks for the information Sill, I'll be sure to compost it before using. I dug a big hole in the ground and I'm dumping all the droppings into the hole along with leaf litter and I plan on composting it about 3-6 months before using. I also threw in compost from bags and also some mycohhrizal fungi and beneficial bacteria to get things started.

Simon