Clipping wings?

[triplepurpose]

Is trimming the flight feathers of standard Coturnix/Japanese quails a practicable way to prevent them from flying out of a fenced area and/or hitting their heads on a low ceiling?

How often do they grow in new flight feathers? How high would they be able to fly with both sets of primaries clipped?

I live somewhere where daytime aerial predation would not be a concern and am exploring cost-effective and manageable ways to provide manageable outdoor space (to complement secure weather-proof pens) for a smallish egg-centric breeding flock while still protecting them from rats, cats, stray dogs, and the occasional owl.

I prefer no such modifications at all in a perfect world but wing clipping is painless and non-mutilating and I know how to do it and if it works it could frankly help make the difference between being able to have quail or not--fencing/netting is expensive here and local options are limited, and the tropical maritime climate destroys fencing material with frustrating rapidity, so a full-blown aviary-type space with high sides and netting over the top is a big investment just to be able try something out.

But I haven't encountered anything about wing-clipping in the literature I have so far read, so I'm wondering why...

TIA for your input, and be well.

 

[Kiki]

Because no one in their right mind would free range a Coturnix quail.

Quail will be stressed with moving them from cage to outdoor free range daily.
It's best to not stress them by moving them so much...unless I am misunderstanding what you are saying.

Stick to your weather proof pen idea and not free ranging them.

 

[Coastal Quails]

It won't prevent them from hitting their head in a cage if they jump that's for sure. Mine cleared a 1 ft tall wall without even opening her wings.
You could clip one side as a precaution so they don't fly away if they get out, but I'm not sure how you expect to keep predators without an enclosed roof.

Quail don't need a ton of space, maybe something like a movable chicken tractor would work?

 

[Jener8or]

In my experience, the only quail that would be worth clipping wings would be immature quail, that have all their feathers, but before they have grown out fully. I don't think any of my full-grown coturnix quail (even the few standard size/color I have) can fly very far because their body weight outweighs their flying ability. But some of the smaller guys can sure take off! Maybe they also mellow out as they get older. I haven't tested this theory out to a fault, but mine don't seem to fly very far, and I don't clip their wings (they aren't free-ranging, though, either.)

 

[triplepurpose]

Because no one in their right mind would free range a Coturnix quail.

Quail will be stressed with moving them from cage to outdoor free range daily.
It's best to not stress them by moving them so much...unless I am misunderstanding what you are saying.

Stick to your weather proof pen idea and not free ranging them.

Thanks for replying. Forgive me if I misread the tone, but frankly I feel like more information and less implied judgement could go a long way... To be specific: What precisely motivates the statement that "no one in their right mind would free-range a Coturnix quail?" Or What exactly about quail coming and going from a run to a house would "stress" them? I'm genuinely curious because I literally don't know and I don't want to make assumptions--that's why I asked for information. If I know more, I can make a more educated assessment, and go from there. Just FYI, if it helps, I have kept and bred poultry for decades, even led workshops, so I have some frame of reference--just not quail-specific firsthand experience. And I don't have quail yet. I'm still looking into how best I might use the resources I have (outdoor space, year round forage, compost, mild weather, general paucity of predators, and all the byproducts of a small diversified working farm) to produce eggs for minimal input while still providing a quality environment that is species-appropriate. Chickens work well, but feed is expensive and chickens require a lot of room to pasture, but quail caught my interest because of the efficient feed conversion, higher nutritional density, more rapid maturity, and compact, manageable size. I'm not interested in keeping quail or any other animal in tiny cages when I have all the aforementioned free resources and space to use. If I can't keep quail humanely to my satisfaction I'll do something else with my time, no problem. While a roomy wooden hutch-type setup is not out of the question, I am however leary of guidance that downplays the importance of providing adequate space and enrichment for any animal (as much of the conventional quail literature I've encountered seems to) and would be grateful for any tips from others more experienced as to how to provide that--for quail.

Thanks again to everyone taking the time to respond. And apologies if I wasn't clear enough earlier... It's hard to encapsulate everything in one little post especially in a global community where people come from all sorts of backgrounds and circumstances.

Cheers!

 

[triplepurpose]

Quail don't need a ton of space, maybe something like a movable chicken tractor would work?

I've thought about that, but the lack of perfectly even ground everywhere here concerns me--ie that they'd slip under any gaps. I'm also not clear about how I'd build a low tractor type pen that was easily accessible but that they wouldn't jump out of as soon as it was opened...?! hmm...

 

[Jener8or]

I've thought about that, but the lack of perfectly even ground everywhere here concerns me--ie that they'd slip under any gaps. I'm also not clear about how I'd build a low tractor type pen that was easily accessible but that they wouldn't jump out of as soon as it was opened...?! hmm...

I built an A-frame moveable quail tractor. It has 2 doors that hinge on the side, is about 6'x2' and the quails pretty much never jump out (they either just sit there or they run to the other side). It has corrugated metal on the back, roof, and on one of the doors and hardware cloth on the front and one of the doors. I will see if I can find a picture.

 

[shrimpsilkies]

I hear that quail can still launch themselves pretty far into the air just because of how muscular they are, but it might soften the blow to the head.

Thanks for replying. Forgive me if I misread the tone, but frankly I feel like more information and less implied judgement could go a long way... To be specific: What precisely motivates the statement that "no one in their right mind would free-range a Coturnix quail?" Or What exactly about quail coming and going from a run to a house would "stress" them? I'm genuinely curious because I literally don't know and I don't want to make assumptions--that's why I asked for information. If I know more, I can make a more educated assessment, and go from there. Just FYI, if it helps, I have kept and bred poultry for decades, even led workshops, so I have some frame of reference--just not quail-specific firsthand experience. And I don't have quail yet. I'm still looking into how best I might use the resources I have (outdoor space, year round forage, compost, mild weather, general paucity of predators, and all the byproducts of a small diversified working farm) to produce eggs for minimal input while still providing a quality environment that is species-appropriate. Chickens work well, but feed is expensive and chickens require a lot of room to pasture, but quail caught my interest because of the efficient feed conversion, higher nutritional density, more rapid maturity, and compact, manageable size. I'm not interested in keeping quail or any other animal in tiny cages when I have all the aforementioned free resources and space to use. If I can't keep quail humanely to my satisfaction I'll do something else with my time, no problem. While a roomy wooden hutch-type setup is not out of the question, I am however leary of guidance that downplays the importance of providing adequate space and enrichment for any animal (as much of the conventional quail literature I've encountered seems to) and would be grateful for any tips from others more experienced as to how to provide that--for quail.

Thanks again to everyone taking the time to respond. And apologies if I wasn't clear enough earlier... It's hard to encapsulate everything in one little post especially in a global community where people come from all sorts of backgrounds and circumstances.

Cheers!

Enrichment is best offered by adding dust baths, hiding seeds or insects in the soil or the dust bath, hanging some lettuce or dandelion leaves around. Mine also love a refrigerated half cucumber on hot days to peck at, millet sprays and other seed heads are good for them to peck at too. Just being able to nap and relax is enrichment too, and in my pen I have several cinder blocks on their side, and the quail will sit inside them when it’s too hot or too cold, and jump on top of them to get at seeds or greens. Another thing mine like is when I put a piece of cardboard in my compost heap, the woodlice and small worms will hide in the cardboard folds and then can be pecked out for a protein treat. They are pretty simple to provide enrichment for.
It seems like you care more about the health and happiness of the birds than egg production, so you can even try to add straw for them to build nests, who knows you might even get a hen to go broody and hatch her own eggs, which is a sure sign you’ve got them feeling comfortable and mentally healthy.

In my experience, quail do quite well in a spacious wooden hutch on the ground, with anti-digging wire under the ground and a good bit of netting over the top to keep them from smacking their head. They like roofs, and hate being out in the open—in fact, having a roof makes mine less likely to flush fly upwards since they have somewhere to tuck underneath instead. They do not like moving from place to place and do not like being far from cover.

 

[triplepurpose]

It seems like you care more about the health and happiness of the birds than egg production

Ideally I'd like to be focused on both (and producing eggs of high quality while I'm at it and not just quantity). And in my experience with animals in general the two goals tend to overlap somewhere which for me is the "sweet spot" that I love about husbandry... That's when it really "clicks" and I get excited about it.

Anyway... Thank you for the ideas!

 

[triplepurpose]

I built an A-frame moveable quail tractor. It has 2 doors that hinge on the side, is about 6'x2' and the quails pretty much never jump out (they either just sit there or they run to the other side). It has corrugated metal on the back, roof, and on one of the doors and hardware cloth on the front and one of the doors. I will see if I can find a picture.

Ah! Thank you. That makes sense... I'd love to see a picture if it's convenient but I think I get the concept...