Gotta get ready, 12 days left.

[bamachickens]

So I'm a procrastinator, I can't help it.

I am about 12-14 days from my potential hatch. I have 129 quail eggs in the incubator. My ultimate goal is to have a setup that will allow me to process birds to eat, and have some layers that will replenish the stock.

I am going to make a closed brooder with 2 lamps in the top for the chicks right after they hatch.

I am going to have another wire front brooder to move them into as they get older.

The next step will be the pens, and this is where I am torn.

I will have a grow out pen, probably 2' wide x 3' tall x I have 16 feet to work with, might make it into 2 pens.

I want to have breeding pens also, and I have this same 16 feet to work with, I was thinking of making some smaller pens and seperating them into breeding groups, probably one rooster and 5 hens in each. If I make them 2' x 3' x 5' each, will they be big enough for this group of 6(I haven't seen anything about how much space they need). And is it better to have seperate groups, or just one big community breeding pen?

The quail are Georgia Giant Bobwhite.

Any opinions are appreciated.

 

[shelleyd2008]

Hey there! I don't think you'll need two different brooders, just have a wire brooder and put a tarp over it to keep the heat in. They don't need as much heat as long as chickens do, but they do need more heat when they are new babies. I put mine outside in an open wire cage at 3 weeks old, with no heat, and they are fine.

I'm not sure about bobwhites, but coturnix only need 1 sq. ft. of space per bird. So a 2 x 5 cage would be big enough for at least 10 birds.

I don't know other peoples opinions, but I personally like the colony setting, with 10-12 females and 2-3 males. I think this allows for more diversity. If you have 1 male and 5 hens, the chicks from these eggs wouldn't be able to be bred together, at least I wouldn't want to. If you had more males, the matings wouldn't be so cut-and-dry, so there would be more genetic diversity, unless your parent birds are related.

If it were me, I would keep 10-12 females and 2-3 males, in the 2 x 5 pen. And you also don't need it to be 3 feet high I don't think, unless bobwhites roost? Not sure about that part.

Good luck on your hatch!!