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yep im attempting to keep my buttons outdoors (though many say not to, i've talked to a lot of button people on HERE that say it's possible as long as you avoid drafts).
My coturnix should do perfeclty fine outdoors, some people here in PA have coturnix just in a simple rabbit hutch with just wire on 3 sides and a wire floor, and the back and roof with solid wood, and a tarp thrown over to keep drafts out during the winter works well for them. SO im just having my coturnix in a 6 hole wire cage with it fastened up good with tarps to keep out drafts.
Here is what I have my buttons in (a lllarrrge rabbit hutch):
All I did was bought hardware cloth, cut it to about 7 inches (im guessing on the inches if you want I can measure it tomorrow if you're curious) wide and wrapped it completely around the outdoor partof the buttons hutch-- attaching it to the chickenwire that was origonally on the hutch with zipties). You can see it okay enough in this picture with my two buttons that have been outdoors since i bought them over 3 weeks ago (so they are winterizing already):
^^ As you can see the flooring in the outdoor part of the hutch was already hardware cloth so i kept it the same. They walk well on it, the only reason they're so close to the side of the cage is beacuse they are trying to avoid me it takes about 5 mins (of hiding and continual snapping of pictures) to get a good picture of these two lol!
And here is the 6 hole coturnix quail cage (was formerally used for rabbits and before that used for fox) with the white rabbit hutch that houses my for now- pair of button quails:
The 6 hole cage system is just simply ziptied to the fence...and just today I did more to the cage system, I got more hardware cloth, cut it (measured to...) 7 inches wide, and ziptied it the whole way around the base of the front of the cage...I will do the same for the back ( just to avoid any ones head popping through and getting hurt somehow). The lids are opened up in this picture, I took off three of the most damaged lids and zip tied new hardware cloth lids to the top which i will be goign ot the farm store (
tractor supply) to get some sort of latches per each cage. And atelast 2 large tarps with bungie cords to keep the tarp warpped around the cage good to keep them warm...I may actually also lay a slab of old wood over the top of the whole 6 compartment cage system to make the tarp sturdier so no melting snow/ice leaks in somehow). I have a few more weeks to perfect this idea so I'm working as I go I'll deffinatly post more pictures of it hopefully tomrrow.
That rabbit hutch by the way, if you notice has an indoor area for the birds, it's a huge area i need to get teh measurements again to post incase you're curious...put it this way, I could easily stuff my 15lb male cocker spaniel on the indoor hutch part lol. NOt hat i would ...
The 6 compartment cage system is 10 ft long, 2 ft wide, each compartment is 2 by 2 ft
Also if you're wondering, the hutch is on the outside of the fence, and the compartment cages are on the inside of the fence.
Just worked out that way...I was going to have the coturnix cages on the outside of the fence too but those huge oak and poplar trees kind of made that idea impossible.
