Anyone keep quail outdoors in cold weather climates?

[FatherFalcon]

They go outside in hutches as soon as they hit 4 weeks (2 weeks in summer).
52° is the average coldness here in San Diego during the colder months.

 

[goodeggsforyou]

Coturnix quail can handle below freezing temperatures quite well. Button quail, however, are from SE Asia and cannot handle temperatures below 40-50 well.

Quail do not have breeds, but there are different species and different colour varieties within each species.

Thank you!

 

[goodeggsforyou]

When it comes to keeping any species of bird in cold climate, some breeds definitely do better than others. However most healthy birds will adapt to their environment. Definitely started as chicks in the spring, by late fall they will have learned to deal with your highs, lows and to some degree, extremes. So if you lived in Alaska say, and your birds were used to temps between 50F and 20F by late fall early winter, as the temp drops slowly into winter to -20 to -30, technically they should be able to adapt to these cold temps as long as the weather changed slowly. You couldn't take a bird out of Florida and expect them to survive living in Alaska and visa versa. Generally most birds can tolerate 20 degree drops from normal over night temps without struggling too much. 30 or more degrees colder than the average over night lows might put them in danger.

Other than Button Quail, most other species of quail can handle most winter temps with out added heat.

Thank you for the thorough and helpful response. I am hearing that it is important to keep their feet warm. Would straw scattered over frozen, bare earth be enough if they were able to keep their feet off of the bare ground when needed?

 

[TwoCrows]

Thank you for the thorough and helpful response. I am hearing that it is important to keep their feet warm. Would straw scattered over frozen, bare earth be enough if they were able to keep their feet off of the bare ground when needed?

I would definitely keep them off wire, I use either burmuda grass hay or wood shavings. Straw would definitely work too.

 

[goodeggsforyou]

I am in Anchorage Alaska. Mine are outside making fertilizer for my garden. They are in a fabric greenhouse. No heat. I do turn a lightA on for them in the afternoon. I mix the seed with suet in the winter and feed alot of kitchen scraps. I use a travel bowl for dogs. It has a wide rim to keep them out of the water. Buried in the deep litter it rarely freezes. Next winter they will be in bins on the ground.

Bins like the plastic storage bins you buy at Walmart? Don't they need more room to move around?

 

[goodeggsforyou]

I would definitely keep them off wire, I use either burmuda grass hay or wood shavings. Straw would definitely work too.

Thank you! I'm going to take advantage of your knowledge again if that's ok. I want to ask if we were to tarp wrap our cyclone chicken run (there are particle boards and tin on top to shelter from snow and rain) and put a heat lamp in for times when it gets -10 to -40 degrees, do you think they will not suffer? I realize birds can survive a great deal, but I really don't want them suffering. I can't seem to find actual studies on what birds can healthfully tolerate.

 

[goodeggsforyou]

Is this a trick question?Quial are gamebirds and live in the wild.We domesticated them.If left outside yearround most all birds will acclimate to their area.I have cockatiels and diamond doves that live outside yearround and they are healthy and fertile birds.Their pen is entirely covered in poly and xmas trees are placed in their pen for roosting in the branches,but they seem to choose their feed cups and crap in their food.The doves are still laying eggs,well ice eggs,and their still trying to set on the eggs and hatch them.I don't think they will hatch,but you can't convince the birds that.I pull the eggs and they lay more.
In N.H.,Tony

Yeah they live in the wild, but do they live in areas where it gets to -40 degrees such as where we are. I guess that's what I need to look up!

 

[goodeggsforyou]

They go outside in hutches as soon as they hit 4 weeks (2 weeks in summer).
52° is the average coldness here in San Diego during the colder months.

Thank you. It gets to -40 where we live in Montana, unfortunately.

 

[goodeggsforyou]

Im from Ontario, same weather you get . Mine are outside all year round on wire , just as my Valley's , Gamble's and most of the Bob's. All are facing east so they get the morning sun . Just as long they have good shelter and no drafts or cold winds they seem to do just fine. All my pens also have shelters built on them.Their also blocked from the north and west winds which seem to be the coldest here. Hope this helps ya.

Thanks for the good info. Can you tell me what are the lowest lows you get in Winter? Thanks so much.

 

[TwoCrows]

Thank you! I'm going to take advantage of your knowledge again if that's ok. I want to ask if we were to tarp wrap our cyclone chicken run (there are particle boards and tin on top to shelter from snow and rain) and put a heat lamp in for times when it gets -10 to -40 degrees, do you think they will not suffer? I realize birds can survive a great deal, but I really don't want them suffering. I can't seem to find actual studies on what birds can healthfully tolerate.

Definitely close off as much wind and drafts as you can. I am not against adding heat and temps below -10F definitely get my heat lamps going. The birds can use them if they need it, not if they don't. No need to freeze the meat off their bones. Just make sure to permanently attach all heat lamps so they can't fall and start a fire.

Definitely start with chicks in spring or even adults, so they have all summer into fall to adapt to your environment.