Coturnix Quail Basics- Information and Pictures Galore

[Chaneys Ranch]

Quote: My breeders I supplement with greens and meaworms. Offer grit, cuttlebone free choice, or oyster shell.
Mine do "ok" on 24% unmedicated chick starter, if I can't get the purina gamebird. The kent feeds is 27%.
Mature adults say 6 months seem to do better on 24-27%.

I don't keep the meaties long, usually process 6-8 weeks. Those get the 27% or higher and the weight is much better on them.
They grow so very fast, the high protein encourages muscle growth. That's what I want in the meaties.
I have the majority hitting around 13 oz live weight, and keep setting the larger eggs only.
We eat the other eggs. If I get a 16oz bird, it goes right into a breeding pen.

 

[humboldtgrrl]

fantastic information, THANK YOU!

 

[humboldtgrrl]

They will be delayed on laying, might be a few weeks yet.
If you can get mealworms or even chopped eggs into them, it will help a lot to give them the protein boost they need.
Ideally they need up to 30% protein as a meat bird. Just for egg production, even 24% would be a big improvement.

This i good to know, I will up my protein and hopefully kick them into laying.

 

[TwoBit]

Yup I forgot to mention that I do feed meal worms and some sprouts (alfalfa and clover etc.) And there is this stuff at TSC called farmers helper it a 32% maybe 36%? It has fish(animal proteins)in it. I mix this in with the flockraiser as well.. It claims to make their poop more firm and clean up is easier.. I have found this to be true so far...

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Yup I forgot to mention that I do feed meal worms and some sprouts (alfalfa and clover etc.) And there is this stuff at TSC called farmers helper it a 32% maybe 36%? It has fish(animal proteins)in it. I mix this in with the flockraiser as well.. It claims to make their poop more firm and clean up is easier.. I have found this to be true so far...

I have made several calls and found pure fishmeal at about $60 for a 50# bag locally. Its going to help boost a lot of my feed programs with the other poultry too.
If you have a feed mill locally, that's the way to go! You can mix your own feed according to the species of birds, and what the end purpose is too.
Game type birds need a meat protein to build muscle tissue.

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

Hope someone can help ((postin here bc this thread gets alot of views))
I just picked up my first group today. I had to sex them myself bc the person waits until they crow/lay to tell... well i was hoping it would be regular pharohs etc but they are tibetans and tibetan tuxedos (not much white) so they cant be chest feather sexed.. well pickles! So i grab the ones that look the biggest best healthiest.

After getting home and settin them up in their hutch i searched about byc here for vent sexing... ugh.. mine are 5.5wks old. So all the threads are about chick sexing or adult sexing which is simply foam-roo and no foam-hen /: but mine are not chicks.. and not old enough to be crowing or making foam so it seems.

From studying the threads and pics it seems to me best guess is i have 4 hens and 3 roos ): or all roos.... triple ugh! I am doing this for eatin eggs so i need hens hens hens hens.

Any input is super helpful!

On the plus side i found a co-op place near the tsc i was gonna go to and ends up the co-op place has 28% protien poultry/game bird feed for $15-odd for 50# tsc best was $18-odd for 50# and it was 22% protien.

 

[ggschulz]

Hope someone can help ((postin here bc this thread gets alot of views))
I just picked up my first group today. I had to sex them myself bc the person waits until they crow/lay to tell... well i was hoping it would be regular pharohs etc but they are tibetans and tibetan tuxedos (not much white) so they cant be chest feather sexed.. well pickles! So i grab the ones that look the biggest best healthiest.

After getting home and settin them up in their hutch i searched about byc here for vent sexing... ugh.. mine are 5.5wks old. So all the threads are about chick sexing or adult sexing which is simply foam-roo and no foam-hen /: but mine are not chicks.. and not old enough to be crowing or making foam so it seems.

From studying the threads and pics it seems to me best guess is i have 4 hens and 3 roos ): or all roos.... triple ugh! I am doing this for eatin eggs so i need hens hens hens hens.

Any input is super helpful!

On the plus side i found a co-op place near the tsc i was gonna go to and ends up the co-op place has 28% protien poultry/game bird feed for $15-odd for 50# tsc best was $18-odd for 50# and it was 22% protien.

My latest batch turns 6 weeks on Sunday, so about the same age as yours. They are A&M, Pharoah and Tibetans. I noticed the first egg in the pen today, and some of the boys have been crowing for 10 days or so. The whole pen is for "freezer camp" so I have not been paying much attention, but with a 25%+ feed (I am feeding 26.5% turkey starter) and plenty of light, you should be seeing/hearing what you need to sex them once they settle in. Moving can put a hold on their development. I know it did my first group that I bought.

Good Luck!

 

[teradragon]

Id get the higher protein feed for your birds. Once they settle in, you will probably be able to tell what you have!

I moved my birds outside last week and I were getting eggs at first, but now they have stopped laying. I'm assuming it's because they are getting less light, but I moved them into a spacious coop yesterday and couldn't help but notice how easy they were to catch and how much I could feel their keels :-/

Will they settle in eventually? I'm hoping locking them up in a warm, dry coop for the night will help them feel more secure. I had a hutch/run before where they stayed out at night...

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

Oops that should be 5wks old my bad. And ya i got the higher protien feed
Well hopefully about a week or so i will be able to try again with better luck and fingers crossed eggs soon.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

By 8 weeks, you will know for sure. my Reds/Tibetans got fairly large but did take a bit longer.
The line I had was pretty mean and the roos were terribly aggressive too. (eBay birds, ugh)
I still have some tuxedos, more as pets, adorable lil guys. I culled the group of reds, and just stuck with the jumbos & goldens.
They are just easier to sex for me and get bigger.