Australia - Six states..and that funny little island.

[Colourful]

So, I finally decided to start digging where my pallet coop is going as I was going to have a brick floor or at least bury some wire etc. Moved the bricks that I had laid out, got the shovel and clunk! Shovel hit something hard. Turns out there is a concrete slab just covered with grass, in the exact spot I was going to put my coop! Free concrete floor! I'm so excited!

That was lcuky, Congratulations Pinky!

 

[IamSamSam]

off the topic, bull that jumped over fence to get to our girls, took 4 hrs to get him back over the other side.

That's definitely prime beef. Maybe you can get free high quality bubbas !

I reckon a paintball gun would go alright to scare things like that off. I want to get one but they're a bit pricey. Just don't actually hit anything.. Paintballs can still pack a whollop.

I would be extremely careful with buying a paintball gun without checking police registration and licensing first. I seize them when they are imported without permit all the time. BUT your concept is great. Loud sudden noise may continue to fighen it off or a cat statue move it every morning around the yard

 

[IamSamSam]

Great news about the slab pinky

 

[Pinky Macgyver]

That's definitely prime beef. Maybe you can get free high quality bubbas !
I would be extremely careful with buying a paintball gun without checking police registration and licensing first. I seize them when they are imported without permit all the time. BUT your concept is great. Loud sudden noise may continue to fighen it off or a cat statue move it every morning around the yard

You seize them? Mind if I ask what you do for a living? Sounds interesting. Yeah, heard you need a licence for one. Would be a while before I could afford one anyway.

 

[IamSamSam]

You seize them? Mind if I ask what you do for a living? Sounds interesting. Yeah, heard you need a licence for one. Would be a while before I could afford one anyway.

Lol.

I am a customs officer.

 

[satay]

Now that would be a fun job Sam.. ok maybe not fun but interesting.

 

[Pinky Macgyver]

Wow, I'm silly. Of course importation + seizing = customs but yeah, that's pretty cool.

 

[Colourful]

Here are my first two ducklings ever! They are Pekin (the large breed, not the call type) and grow about twice as fast as normal ducklings so all the better for being ready when Winter hits.

Other 4 are due tomorrow... Like these two were...

 

[satay]

Oh they are sooo cute colourful. Congrats.

 

[cluckcluckluke]

HI all I'm back!

I spent 10 minutes typing an "essey" this morning, and it vanished! If this is a double up - appologies.

So, there it is again: I suggest Japanese (coturnix) quail, they are easy to keep. I know you mentioned buttons before Luke, they are cute too, much smaller. Good pet. Eggs are edible, but so tiny they are not commonly used for food. Button quails sit on their eggs, coturnix don't. Buttons will have to be separated when incubating eggs.
I strongly suggest getting the females from one breeder and the male from another. They need to be from different bloodlines to avoid inbreeding.
Bedding: mixed opinions here, a lot of breeders keep them on wire (easy to keep clean), but if on wire at least give them a tray of sand so they can get their feet off the wire sometimes. Mine are on mulch - just forest mulch from a local treeloper at $15 per m3. I also have a sandbox. Keeping them on sand is good too, just sieve the sand between bedding changes to keep clean. They poop a lot. If you think chickens poop a lot, wait till you have quails!
I use hay (I dry my grass clippings) for baby quails. Wood shavings are commonly used too (no cedar).

Don't bother with a hutch to sleep in. They will not use it. Nesting boxes are not necessary either. They drop the eggs wherever they happen to be at the time. I have picked eggs from a feeder and a water bowl before!
They like small cosy hiding places. Little "caves" made from old plant pots or little baskets. They also like vegetation to hide under. They will not destroy it like chickens.

I probably wouldn't keep them in aquarium, unless you have time to clean it twice a day. They smell stronger than chickens. Cage would be better (good ventilation). Guinea pig hutch works great.
I had my baby quails in a large plastic box with mesh top, and had to clean it twice a day. Granted, I had 15 of them!

Hope it helps

This is great help. Got all the answers I needed. Thanks you! Only one problem, My sister and I are hooked on King Quails!!! Are these a no go for beginners? Is there anything different about them than the Japs, apart from size.lol?
Will have to look out for a nice cage then, we have asked some other people about the aquarium and they all agreed, NO! So thank you for just giving the final no.lol.
Thanks again!

I
I really didn't think you would talk her round lol

haha, took some convincing but I got her to.

hi cluckcluckluke i do have some which are almost 3 weeks old now. im in sydney. the eggs i hatched are satay. very nice colours indeed. thanks satay.

hey colourful how is the hatch going?

Thanks quail man. I think live quails to here would be to cruel and I am not going up to Sydney anytime soon. But thanks anyway! I have found some just waiting on the breeder to get some more girls in!

off the topic, bull that jumped over fence to get to our girls, took 4 hrs to get him back over the other side.

HOLY COW

. That is one big bull! ( pardon the pun )

Japs are probably best as a starter quails. Mine are on the grass so that is their only flooring. They don't need a nest as they just lay wherever they feel like. I found mine didn't use sleeping hutches so I took them out.

Thanks satay, That's what I was thinking. But my sister is really keen on the King Quails ( Asian Blue's ) and I like them to. Are they harder to look after? Will they be much different from the Jap quails. Apart from SIZE.lol. They are so tiny!

Ok Pinky, Ash

or anyone else that can help I need some help with sexing of my barred rocks from Pinky. I have read everything I can about sexing them and I really don't know. Luke you will be shocked to know I can't remember how old they are either lol. They both look identical and they are very dark. They have quite thick legs too so I think they are both boys. The only thing throwing me is I had a barred rock rooster years ago and I don't remember him being this dark at this age. Not the best pics I know but they are in the tractor still with the araucana babies and the bush babies. I had to climb in to take the pics lol.

Trust you to forget when they were born.lol.
Baring colour doesn't distinguish between males and females ( correct me if I'm wrong ) you can get dark and light barred Plymouth rocks. You can also get crele Barred rocks!

I'm going to say boy to the one in the last photo. But better pictures would help!