Blues with chickens??

[Paper_Wadder]

So I need some help, some guidance by anyone who has experience raising blue scaled quail. I have six blues integrated in a 16 x 48 enclosed pen with some 3 month old chickens (3 roosters and 6 chickens), a duck and about a dozen dove.

I’m concerned about my investment. Are the blues safe to be in with them? I’ve heard chickens can kill some blues as they get older.

 

[cavemanrich]

Let me offer some thoughts.
Chickens can show aggression to your doves as well.
Now to the chickens,,,, I see that you have 2 roosters too many at present. Problems are just on the horizon at this point. Not sure what you intend to do with the roosters,,, or chickens... If chickens are for egg laying,, then you only need one rooster if you desire fertile eggs.
I never kept quail,,,, so my knowledge is limited. My reason for avoiding quail,,, they would escape from my run area. I see that you do have a good secure run with overhead also covered.
What I would do,,, make separate compartments inside your run. A compartment for quail,,, a loft for your doves,, and chickens and duck can be together. If the duck is a drake,,, then drake can harm your hens.
If you want to keep all 3 roosters, you may have to build a bachelor pad. That translates to 2 cages to house 2 of the roosters separately. You could always rotate which rooster you want with your hens that day.

WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and

 

[Nabiki]

Mixing species is generally not a good idea, especially when you have birds that are vastly different in size and share the same "zone". For example, both chicken and quail are pretty much ground birds. Even if the chickens don't get territorial, they could injure or kill the quail simply by accident.

Another thing to consider is disease vector. Chickens have resistances to many diseases that quail don't, so they could easily carry something that will infect or kill your quail.

If you can, keeping them separate is the best option.

 

[Paper_Wadder]

Let me offer some thoughts.
Chickens can show aggression to your doves as well.
Now to the chickens,,,, I see that you have 2 roosters too many at present. Problems are just on the horizon at this point. Not sure what you intend to do with the roosters,,, or chickens... If chickens are for egg laying,, then you only need one rooster if you desire fertile eggs.
I never kept quail,,,, so my knowledge is limited. My reason for avoiding quail,,, they would escape from my run area. I see that you do have a good secure run with overhead also covered.
What I would do,,, make separate compartments inside your run. A compartment for quail,,, a loft for your doves,, and chickens and duck can be together. If the duck is a drake,,, then drake can harm your hens.
If you want to keep all 3 roosters, you may have to build a bachelor pad. That translates to 2 cages to house 2 of the roosters separately. You could always rotate which rooster you want with your hens that day.

WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and

Hey thanks for the advice! I intend to cull 2 roosters as soon as they’re fully grown. I did separate the drakes as they were killing my dove. My duck is sweet.

Im considering building a partition inside to separate the chickens and rooster from my quail. My idea would allow for the quail to travel between both sides as desired but will stop the chickens from crossing over to the quail side.

Is this a smart option?

 

[MrJudeRaw]

Hey thanks for the advice! I intend to cull 2 roosters as soon as they’re fully grown. I did separate the drakes as they were killing my dove. My duck is sweet.

Im considering building a partition inside to separate the chickens and rooster from my quail. My idea would allow for the quail to travel between both sides as desired but will stop the chickens from crossing over to the quail side.

Is this a smart option?

It is not a smart option. As Nabiki pointed out chickens carry diseases they are immune to but can and will pass to your quail. Chicken are faster, stronger, smarter, and more lethal in any aspect you can measure than a quail. Giving them a space they can escape to will help but solve none of these issues. Quail will die.

 

[cavemanrich]

Is this a smart option?

Yes I think it is a good option.
If we start thinking about ALL the disease possibilities,,, Then we might as well give up,,, and start living our lives in a glass bubble.
A member on the Illinois state thread,, which I do know personally, keeps quail and chickens . No reports of ether dropping dead from disease.

A separation will keep the quail safe from physical attacks. They can escape into their safe zone by flying over into it. Chickens are not such vicious raptors to chase after them that far.

 

[007Sean]

I tend to agree with all of the above posters. It's not a good idea to raise gamebirds anywhere near chickens, due to the fact that chickens can be carriers of diseases that they can tolerate but will kill gamebirds in a quick chilly minute.

If your raising other poultry on the same property, they should all have their own enclosures. Preferably, a 300ft. separation between you quail enclosure and your chicken enclosure, with the quail enclosure 'upwind' of the chickens.

I realize sometimes space is at a premium and people do run alot of different poultry together in the same enclosure but in my opinion that's just a 'ticking time bomb', waiting to go off.

 

[MrJudeRaw]

Yes I think it is a good option.
If we start thinking about ALL the disease possibilities,,, Then we might as well give up,,, and start living our lives in a glass bubble.
A member on the Illinois state thread,, which I do know personally, keeps quail and chickens . No reports of ether dropping dead from disease.

A separation will keep the quail safe from physical attacks. They can escape into their safe zone by flying over into it. Chickens are not such vicious raptors to chase after them that far.

its specifically not recommended. there is 0 upside to anyone or anything but the person too lazy to build a second enclosure.
You can drive without a seatbelt and be fine your whole life. Its still dangerous. in this case you are letting the quail sit in the backseat without a seatbelt.

 

[Paper_Wadder]

Well I built a temporary pen for the chickens. I suppose I’ll dedicate my coup to the blues.

I plan to use my pump sprayer to disinfect the area. It’ll be a water bleach solution. Mixed weak to mild (1/4 cup bleach to 1 gal H2O).

The ground is mostly all sand. Any thoughts using bleach?

 

[cavemanrich]

I plan to use my pump sprayer to disinfect the area. It’ll be a water bleach solution. Mixed weak to mild (1/4 cup bleach to 1 gal H2O).

The ground is mostly all sand. Any thoughts using bleach?

Bleach is a good disinfectant. Since you are doing a large area,,, you do need to have a large amount.
When I do a semiannual coop cleaning, I remove all contents. Basically all the bedding on floor, and on perches, and platforms. After I hose clean the interior,, I spray the interior with a full strength laundry bleach. I use a small spray bottle,, and wear gloves, and a mask,,,,,,, doing it. I let coop totally dry out before letting chickens re-enter. When weather is warm,,, the drying time is not long.
I never treated their run area grounds. Never seen a need to.

When you do treat your sandy floor,, keep your flock members off until somewhat evaporate/dried. If you could remove your birds totally for the duration of treatment,, THAT WOULD BE IDEAL.