Illinois Quail Keepers

[BReeder!]

Any Illini quailers out there? Let's chat! I'm new to quail still. I have contacts to talk with about chickens and I really enjoy the Illinois thread here on BYC that mainly focuses on chickens. It would be nice to have a place just to talk about quail though with my neighbors. If you keep quail, whether it's just 2 or 3 or 200-300 (or more of course) - backyard keepers, basement breeders, farmers, hatcheries - I want to connect here. What's your story? Where are you located (if you are willing to share)? Why do you raise quail? Any local ordinances or laws you have run into with keeping quail?

 

[BReeder!]

I've been looking into Quail a lot more recently...I do love the chickens and will always have them, but quail seem to be a lot more economical and love the idea of the fast turn around for homesteading.
We are about an hour south of Plainfield in Ford county...I'll be watching how your experience goes and GOOD LUCK! Are you planning on using them for eggs only or will you be using them as meat animals as well? I'm curious how the A&M's taste

I am planning for eggs and meat. I will be breeding as well.
At the moment we have 47 quail chicks that are 4 days old. They are growing fast. They eat and drink a lot. Oh boy, do they poop too?! We had a few with splayed legs that died or I had to cull. We hope the 47 all make it and live long lives, minus the extra males that will go to the freezer at 8-9 weeks.

 

[scootermagoo]

I've been looking into Quail a lot more recently...I do love the chickens and will always have them, but quail seem to be a lot more economical and love the idea of the fast turn around for homesteading.
We are about an hour south of Plainfield in Ford county...I'll be watching how your experience goes and GOOD LUCK! Are you planning on using them for eggs only or will you be using them as meat animals as well? I'm curious how the A&M's taste

 

[pnptrapp]

Hello!

We're just starting out on our journey with quail. We've had them a little over a year now and absolutely love them. We're located in Bond Co. IL, close to Edwardsville and Greenville.

 

[BReeder!]

We are going to be getting some quail this year. How did you decide what breed to get? I was looking into pharoah coturnix quail. Located near the Peoria area.

I ended up getting Jumbo Browns for their size of meat and eggs and ease of sexing. Pharoahs would be easy to sex as well based on chest feather patterns.
I also got TX A&Ms because I wanted to add a little variety with a second breed and they too are a good size.

 

[AmberZooKeeper]

Hello! I am looking for Jumbo Pharaoh!! I am just about five miles from Peoria.

Here is the two permits you could get:

• Wild Game & Bird Breeder, Class A is required to possess various game mammals, game birds and migratory waterfowl. Class A is noncommercial and does not allow licensees to sell.
• Wild Game & Bird Breeder, Class B covers the same as class A plus allows license holders to sell alive or dressed for food purposes.

Class A is $10.50; class B is $20.50. I can't recall the specific numbers on the amount of birds now, and their website is not very user friendly in my opinion

 

[GiggleOinkQuack]

Thank you for the permit info! I’m looking for button quail in IL(I’m in Kane County) so if anyone knows anything let me know please!!

 

[sunbursts]

Go to... https://www.il.wildlifelicense.com/license.php?action=custlkup
Fill out info, pay I think less then $12 and then print your license and you're all set

Now who wants some babies????

 

[sunbursts]

Not sure how to help you win her over, I handled mine as babies to get them use to me. If you still can maybe, hold her like a mama hen would, I kinda hold them in my hand with one hand over their head and they snuggle into my hands and fall asleep....so precious! You might get her to bond with you that was if she's not over the snuggling stage.
I would get her a friend....I happen to have a few extra's! They're 7 weeks and we can almost sex them.
My one bob lady didn't start laying until the next spring during breeding season.
I would not let her out during the day, so very dangerous for a quail and if you don't keep them protected from predators, she'll more then likely be eaten.

 

[WhatsMyNameAgain]

I'm so glad I found this thread, I'm in Illinois and while my city ordinance does not allow chickens, I have been told quail should be alright. I was going to get a license to raise game birds but I was planning on coturnix...are we positive that we don't need one unless we have bobwhites?

Read the post I wrote from before - hopefully the research I did will help you:

I read a lot of the illinois game laws and here's what I found:
http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs3.asp?ActID=1729&ChapterID=43
It's a long read, but basically Bobwhite are the only quail I could find on what was defined as a game bird. These are the only ones which would require a game bird breeding permit (Class A - which allows you to breed them and Class B allows you to breed and sell).
https://www2.illinois.gov/dnr/LPR/Pages/CommercialLicensesFees.aspx

If you want the shortcut to understanding that law (or at least my interpretation), go to the section (in the first link above) where they define what is protected by the act:

"Wildlife protected by this Act, hereby defined as protected species, include the following wild species and all wild species contained in listed families, including, but not limited to, groups of wild species preceding each family name: ... Northern Bobwhite, Colinus virginianus;

Then, to make yourself feel a little better, search the act for Coturnix. You will find 2 spots. Both have to deal with breeders who want to hunt them and the age at which they can be released. When I made this connection, I realized that Coturnix while a gamebird, does not fall under the gamebird protections per this act (i.e. they specifically mention it elsewhere but it is not protected)!

I am not a lawyer - not even close, so proceed at your own discretion. I disclaim all liability. However, although I'm not a lawyer, I can read and I think the argument I've put together is pretty sound. I too am new to this. I want to be legal I was willing to get the permit to breed them. It's like $10. However, after reading VERY closely, my understanding is that so long as you stay with Coturnix quail - you're good - as this does NOT fall under what is protected in the game act. Above all, do your own due dilligence and see if you come to the same conclusion - and if so, let me know - because I'd like some reassurance too.

Moreover, notice that it says "all wild species contained in listed families, including, but not limited to, groups of wild species preceding each family name: ... Northern Bobwhite, Colinus virginianus" (emphasis mine)

So, what is in the colinus family you might ask...well, let's look at wiki:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colinus
This shows that the members are all "Bob Whites"

AND - Coturnix is not a wild breed to the USA. So, not only is this not a Bob White, this is NOT a wild breed... so I'm VERY confident that we're good.

-WhatsMyNameAgain?