I was thinking about having 5-15 Snowflake Bob White Quail Hatching Eggs mailed to me to incubate and hatch. As soon as they are grown do you think I could put them with some bantam chickens? I dont want any fighting I just really want them to live in peace
Any suggestions?
Yes, you can technically keep them together. BUT there are risks and expenses which are higher than maintaining just chickens or quail.
Feed: Quail need more protein than chickens.
Size: Large chickens vs small quail - can lead to bullying of quail.
Habitat: Chickens can generally enjoy a free-range enclosure whereas quail need it enclosed.
And lastly you need good bio-safety skills. Chickens can easily spread diseases to quail (and the reverse is true), and this goes the same with wild birds. This is why you want to avoid having wild birds at your chicken feeder (other than just trying to save on feed expenses!) as you don't want their droppings contaminating where they eat. They are 'strangers' popping in & out - who knows what farm or where they've been before they stopped at your place.
I have seen & read of people who kept quail/chickens together with NO problems. BUT they pretty much always had a closed coop (that is, did not let other fowl people visit it) & did not bring in outside birds into their existing flock. To do so would be to tempt fate.
If say, you keep a closed flock, keep beneficial, long-term breeding methods, raise the birds healthily & cull when needed you are more likely to have good results. The short-term key is raising the birds up together, not introducing an outsider. Long-term is to breed based on health & location.
