Feeding Organic rations to Quail...a "complete" diet is needed

[lizivita]

I have not done as much research as the above people but I have been feeding my quail curds which you can do through a fermentation process. They eat it up. I also feed commercial feed and am experimenting wtih organic grains. They also love to eat bean sprouts.

 

[quailswiss]

What do you think about red compost worms? how many would you have to feed to meet the quail's needs? Could you feed just veg scraps and red worms?

 

[EllyHood]

I'm getting my first group of breeding quail next week and the guy I'm getting them from currently feeds them Durmor (sorry if I've spelled that wrong) chick starter which is 24% protein. My chickens get countryside organics feed which is certified organic, GMO-free, and soy-free. The protein is from fish meal. So, I have a few questions...
Can I feed quail fermented feed? My chickens love it but I don't know if it's ok for quail.
Is suet an appropriate supplement for quail? I have access to grass fed organic suet and I'm assuming it's high in protein?
Is sprouted barley fodder ok for quail?
Has anyone fed quail duckweed? The lemna variety is up to 45% protein.
Is organic cat food an ok supplement and if so, would it be reasonable to feed them countryside organics chick starter (21% protein) and add organic cat food to bump up the protein?

 

[Sill]

Yes to fermented feed having higher B vitamin content, as well as upping the protein content as the grains in the feed are soaked.

My local organic co-op offers 26% protein turkey starter that I will be ordering at the next shipment. I only recently obtained quail so am new to feeding them. I had to argue with my LFS owner about quail not being OK with lower protein foods. He insisted that the 20% stuff he had was fine when I know they started picking on each other when I ran out of the higher protein feed I had been feeding. In the meantime I've ground dog food to up the protein of their feed when my meal worm and black soldier fly cultures have not kept up with demand. I've ordered some 24% turkey starter that is conventional from my LFS but at least it is not medicated.

My problem here is finding higher protein feed that is not medicated! How long do you have to wait anyway until the medicated feed would be out of their system so their eggs and meat is safe to eat??

I can't wait for my organic co-op order to comes in! Here are the ingredients for the 26% organic turkey starter. Let me know what you think. I will be supplementing with mealworms and BSFs in addition to the dry feed and fermented feed.

 

[Sill]

I'm getting my first group of breeding quail next week and the guy I'm getting them from currently feeds them Durmor (sorry if I've spelled that wrong) chick starter which is 24% protein. My chickens get countryside organics feed which is certified organic, GMO-free, and soy-free. The protein is from fish meal. So, I have a few questions...
Can I feed quail fermented feed? My chickens love it but I don't know if it's ok for quail.
Is suet an appropriate supplement for quail? I have access to grass fed organic suet and I'm assuming it's high in protein?
Is sprouted barley fodder ok for quail?
Has anyone fed quail duckweed? The lemna variety is up to 45% protein.
Is organic cat food an ok supplement and if so, would it be reasonable to feed them countryside organics chick starter (21% protein) and add organic cat food to bump up the protein?

Yes you can feed quail fermented feed and they love it once they learn what it is. Some take to it right away and others take some time. Eventually they come to crave it and shovel it down every morning. There is a great thread on fermented feed here. I use homemade kefir and filtered water to start my fermented feed. It ups the protein and calcium content a bit.

I've tried duckweed now that it's warm enough here for it to take off. So far they are just picking at it, but I'm sure they will start eating it more as it becomes familiar.

The cat food is a good way to bump up the protein.

Suet is mostly fat. Quail need more protein, but maybe if your winters are cold suet would be a welcome addition? I wouldn't feed it in summer though.

 

[EllyHood]

I just got off the phone with Countryside Organics and their owner told me their Organic Turkey Starter is 26% protein. Looks like I'll be feeding them that! The chicken feed ferments beautifully with just water. I feed it out after 3 days of soaking and stirring. I bet this stuff will ferment well too.

Look at all the goodies it has!
Organic Field Peas, Organic Corn, Organic Wheat, Fish Meal, Organic Flaxseed, Organic Rice Bran, Organic Alfalfa Meal, Calcium Carbonate, Dried Organic Kelp, Dicalcium Phosphate, Salt, Sodium Selenite, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Choline, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex, d-Pantothenic Acid, Niacin, Riboflavin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamine, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Biotin, Folic Acid, Iron Polysaccharide Complex, Manganese Polysaccharide Complex, Zinc Polysaccharide Complex, Copper Polysaccharide Complex, Cobalt Polysaccharide Complex, Yeast Culture, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus Fermentation Product, Bacillus Licheniformis, Bacillus Subtilis, Lactobacillus Lactis, Enterococcus Faecium, (Dried Aspergillis Oryzae Fermentation Extract)

That's all quail appropriate, right?

http://www.countrysideorganics.com/product.php?productid=140&cat=0&page=1

 

[AClassicalLife]

Hi Tanya.Thank you for writing.
I've got a place in Telluride. We're practically neighbors. Actually- we are neighbors since everything is seven hours away in every direction except Durango and Montrose.
The issue with organic is that the FDA does not allow any livestock nutrition product that includes fish meal to not include specific preservatives and these are not organic.
We've grappled with this problem for years as most of our client base are natural food folks and local foodivores. I've got some work in front of me and will return to this afterward.
In the short term, look into organic unhulled sesame, organic quinoa, organic millet: Golden Organic, Golden Prairie they're both Colorado have both. Teff seed from the Teff company in Iowa is another very important material. Cooked wild rice/brown rice mixture is another. I'll be back with the amino acid profiles required for Coturnix and how to arrive at the base needed for egg and also meat.

My favorite Coturnix of all time is the Harlequin! Pets only but such personalities!

I know I'm responding to a very old thread so please forgive me. I'm interested in the subject OP and the poster I'm quoting have brought up.

Locally, I've found nothing but 20.5% protein chick starter/turkey starter that is USDA Organic and Non-GMO Project Verified. It is also soy and corn free, which I like. I can supplement worms from a vermiculture bin, but only so many at a time so they can continue to breed. They would have access to other bugs as well. I've been looking into triticale since I have an organic source for that. It's very high in protein - 21%. I'm just not sure how much to add... Einkorn is also another possibility, but not quite as high in protein. I'm aware some people say 18%-27% is enough protein, and others 32%... I've heard of people using 20.5% without issues but I want to make sure I provide enough and I see such a range of differing opinions on how much protein is enough protein, so I'd like to play it safe and, if possible, add to the aforementioned feed to bump the protein up to a safe level. I cannot add very much, if any, fishmeal. It would barely raise the protein at all when I inquired, and it would be very cost-prohibitive. So I am just researching my options right now.

 

[Fat Daddy]

I was around and knew Tonya well back then. She worked long and hard on this project. It continued even after what was documented here. Protein content of soy meal is 45 to 48%. Fish meal is around 65%. If I remember right. Tonya's feed program/experiment eventually ended up using bone meal. It runs right at 50% crude protein. I do remember it being a lot more expensive for her to keep her feed soy-GMO free. Infact she ended up running both. GMO free and then cheaper eggs that were raised on normal feed. Meal worms are one of the most expensive, Labor intensive form of protein you can use. If I were set on going soy/corn/GMO free. And could find a commercial feed that was 21% protein. That I could afford. This is the path I would walk. Once you start custom mixing your own feed on a hobby level. It opens up a whole new set of challenges that can take the enjoyment straight out of keeping the birds. When it becomes like a second job, I start think'n about fish'n more! I hope you find a way that works for you. Good luck either way...

 

[La Condessa]

I was around and knew Tonya well back then. She worked long and hard on this project. It continued even after what was documented here. Protein content of soy meal is 45 to 48%. Fish meal is around 65%. If I remember right. Tonya's feed program/experiment eventually ended up using bone meal. It runs right at 50% crude protein. I do remember it being a lot more expensive for her to keep her feed soy-GMO free. Infact she ended up running both. GMO free and then cheaper eggs that were raised on normal feed. Meal worms are one of the most expensive, Labor intensive form of protein you can use. If I were set on going soy/corn/GMO free. And could find a commercial feed that was 21% protein. That I could afford. This is the path I would walk. Once you start custom mixing your own feed on a hobby level. It opens up a whole new set of challenges that can take the enjoyment straight out of keeping the birds. When it becomes like a second job, I start think'n about fish'n more! I hope you find a way that works for you. Good luck either way...

And bone meal worked well for her? It didn't raise the calcium levels too high for the roos?

I would love to be able to go organic/non-gimp with my birds.

 

[AClassicalLife]

You would go ahead with 21%? 20.5% is the highest I can find here, I hope that's acceptable at least as a "base". I could order the Phoenix feed mentioned here or another brand that's USDA Organic, that would likely entail shipping fees (which might be too high, Phoenix's were reasonable if you buy enough, I can freeze some) but the other brand is a little better IMPO. The ease of it being pre-formulated is definitely very helpful. I'd rather not make all of their feed, but if I could add anything to it (like one or two grains) to bump up the protein that would definitely be doable, I just don't know how much to add. Hmmm. Thanks !