Having backyard remodeled and need to move Gambel quail. Also, breeding/egg question

[Mary1956]

Hi, I have a pair of gambels in a 4'W X 8'L X 6'H pen. My first question is I'm not interested in breeding them but they obviously will and I want to remove any eggs they have. Someone said I could stress them out and should get "artificial" eggs to replace any I remove. Is this true? My second is we will be remodeling our backyard this summer so I will need to relocate them temporarily 8-10 weeks while all the work is being done. I was thinking of getting a rabbit hutch and putting them in there. Then putting in my house as there is no where outside I can put them where there won't be a lot of construction going on. Would this be a good idea? TIA

 

[UncleFrank]

No, you won't stress them by removing the eggs, the process might but just move slowly/gently when removing.
And...yes a rabbit hutch will be perfect for a pair of quail.

Gambels and Valleys are two of the most timid quail, be slow and gentle whenever you're near them, toss some chicken scratch or bird seed away from where you're removing the eggs from to get their minds off of you.
I have an outside nest box on my quail pens, so when I collect their eggs, I don't bother them as much.