Who does self-sustaining quail?

Hi! I'm new here, new to quail, and a dabbler in permaculture.

I just got my coturnix quail about 8 weeks ago. I have mostly pharoahs but a few mixed/goldens/tuxedos. Right now I have 20 quail (age ranges from 2 weeks to three months old).

Here is the Quaility Inn (unfinished in these pics):





It's made from locally harvested and milled cypress, and was built from the scraps of another project. And, so far it has withstood regular raccoon and snake attacks — we live on the edge of protected forest so wildlife is a part of life.

One of the things that is driving me crazy about my quail is that I am spending about $30/month feeding them and having to drive 25 min away to get their feed. That is a lot of money and time for a tiny bird! Since I'm a blooming permie, I want to rethink my quail.

Right now, they get organic, nonGMO chick starter, omega-3 supplement, meal worms (each probably gets around 10 worms a day with how I like to spoil them), and fresh sprouts from my garden as a treat. They look great, my chicks are growing fast, and my adult quail are producing healthy eggs. The roos we've harvested have been fat and very healthy.

We have an edible landscaping company so sprouts and earthworms/other bugs abound. I have heard that some bugs contain bad stuff like tapeworms for quail, so I am freezing and then drying those to kill off anything. My plan is to use chia, alfalfa and other sprouts (purslane with its high omega 3s would be one of those too) along with freeze/dried bugs as a main source of feed. I have fed these things intermittently to my quail, and they seem to like it and eat it hungrily. I want to start using the chick feed as more of a supplement to a rounded, healthy, sustainable diet.

As for a self-sustaining watering, we are thinking of a system that will use rainwater from the shed and Quaility Inn, and feed into the waterers — but that's still in the thought development phase. Right now, I have to take 3-4 of them off every day and refill with water. I don't want to get bigger waterers because I don't want the water just sitting in their stagnant. So we'll see if that's achievable in the sustainability department.

I am working on some sprouting methods to decrease work on my end, and trying some new options. One method I've used is a starter tray and allowing them to grow up, and then letting the quail mow them down, and then pull them out and let them grow up again. Another is using sprouting trays and using that space on top of the pen.

I'd love to hear about other people's efforts on going self-sustaining with quail. The only research I ever find is "mixing your own quail feed." But I want to grow my own quail feed I'm also happy to hear thoughts on why this won't work because you've already tried it!

Why do you think freezing will kill tapeworms?

Clint

It'd be the drying part of that process I'm hoping will kill anything inside the earthworm

I doubt that will actually kill all the worms/protozoans/bacteria, since many poultry afflictions can live in dirt for years, likely experiencing those same temperatures..

Edit to add: I'd also be concerned feeding that many bugs about the fat content. Bugs are high in protein but are also high in fat.

dc3085 said:

I doubt that will actually kill all the worms/protozoans/bacteria, since many poultry afflictions can live in dirt for years, likely experiencing those same temperatures..

Edit to add: I'd also be concerned feeding that many bugs about the fat content. Bugs are high in protein but are also high in fat.

Click to expand...

You mean the amount I'm feeding now? Yes, I spoil them like crazy. But I can't help it! They are all very treat motivated and when they run up to me and give me that "look" I just have to give them a treat. I'm trying to be better (only giving treats once a day, for example).

Good point on the drying process. The temp for drying would be about 195° — certainly within the government's guideline for killing harmful bacteria in human foods (165° for poultry). That's the same temp I make my venison jerky out of as well.

But I will look to see if there is a better method. Perhaps I can boil or steam them first? Then I can skip the freezing and go straight to the drying (I only thought to freeze so I can kill them kindly and so they will stand still for drying). Kind of like making green tea. Only more gross lol

The biggest issue is that I can't seem to find anyone who does self-sustaining quail (I realize there is a reason for this since unlike chickens you aren't free ranging) to bounce ideas off of, which is why I joined. Do either of you have a good system?

Following. I am also permie minded and tryin to grow things for my quail. So far you are wayyyy ahead of me though.

One idea i have had is duckweed. It is like an algea that grows on/in stangnant water. So you can just setup a kiddie pool with water and toss in water, some manure, and some starter duckweed. And when it grows in just scoop it out and feed it. Or strain out and dry it and feed it.

Duckweed is really high protien.

I was thinkin they sell those little crickets at the pet stores but i dont know about raising them. I dont really mess with bugs. Not my thing.

If you had worm bins and just used your own scraps/manure/etc could you feed out the worms from that without worrying about illness/nasties?

I don't really have a feed system since I'm limited by yard space. I just feed purina gamebird chow or king pheasant crumble because GMO free feed is still out of reach for me. With the high protein requirements it is very difficult to feed quail naturally with what most have available.

As far as bugs are concerned, it is recommended that you don't feed more than 3 large meal worms per day per quail because of fat content, different bugs may have different mineral contents however but finding them will probably be tricky. Most info you can find on feeding bugs relates to crickets and mealworms. In the wild, they survived much more on seed and grain such as millet and milo and vegetation, than they do on bugs. Also in the wild they get exponentially more exorcise so they have less un processed fat. It isn't so much their body weight you worry about but fatty hearts and livers.

here is a link regarding feeding mealworms to reptiles but the same principles apply.

Duckweed! Brilliant, ohiogoatgirl! That's way less work than sprouting so would be an easier staple.

My worms come from our organic compost spot on the edge of the woods. It's semi controlled but I wouldn't know how to keep it parasite free since it's all about the beneficial microbes and bacteria. Have you heard of anything?

dc, thanks for info on bugs! I'm definitely overdoing it! I will scale back the bugs and do fresh sprouts instead. My quail will think I'm horrible but I'm willing to get a few cold shoulders for their health

So I already ordered the duckweed to see how the quail like it. I was planning on using my nearby bird bath as the duckweed grower (and getting a small solar pump to gently aerate the water). But now I have kind of a cool idea though I'm not sure if it will work.

Bill Mollison is always saying to have systems exist with the smallest amount of human intervention (it's one thing to check on it daily to make sure it's still working, it's another to have to actively feed etc). So, what if I gave the quail pens individual duckweed feeders? It would be a dish, probably 3 inches deep, and about 6"x4". 4 of the 6 inches would stick out of the pen, and 2" would stick in the pen. That way, the duckweed is growing and thriving outside the pen, and then what gets pushed into the pen by growth can be eaten regularly by the quail. (the stat going around appears to be it doubles every 36 hours, so if the quail eat all of it in the 2"x4" space, it will be replaced in 12-ish hours — 24" of space, losing 8")





The biggest issue with this will be water aeration and keeping nutrient levels up. My thought is to have a simple tubing system outside the pen from one feeding dish to another, and then back up. I don't know anything about plumbing or solar pumps however. It will take lots of research! And it will take a very handy hubby lol

I might invest $20 in a solar pump for the bird bath in the meantime while we flesh out the possibility of having a self-feeder for duckweed. (Plus, I'm getting a little far ahead of myself, watch the quail not even like duckweed!)

Do quail eat duckweed? I grow it, but I don't think my tilapia will want to share!

You don't need a lot of aeration for duckweed. I have had it growing in non-aerated tubs many times.

The main problem I see is you have to have way to fertilize the duckweed that won't make the quail sick. If you make it deep enough outside the cage to have a few minnows in there, that should work. The minnows will need a bit of aeration but they'll fertilize the duckweed, you just have to remember to feed them every day or two and do a partial water change every 1-2 weeks. You don't want the quail drinking yucky water anyway and you'll have to add water since they'll likely drink some. Seems like it would be a very easy to care for system, report back if it works!