Introducing Coturnix in with Bobwhites?

[ffmama]

My daughter, husband, and I recently tried hatching coturnix quail, and a problem with humidity led to very few of them hatching, and the ones that did were very weak and died shortly after. Needless to say, we were devastated, especially since this was supposed to be a beautiful adventure to take my dd's mind off of our family dog, her best friend, dying. Anyways, I immediately went out and bought 6 1-month old bobwhites to fill the void, and I now have someone with newly hatched coturnix who wants to give me some.

My question is, once they are large enough, can I introduce the coturnix into the coop with the bobwhites? How old do they need to be? What is the best method? My dd has been sitting in the coop with the bobwhites every day and they are not the friendliest of birds. I hear that coturnix are more social with people, and therefore I would really like to make this work!

Any help is very much appreciated!

 

[DK newbie]

I haven't had either of the two, but as far as I know they shouldn't be kept together. I'd build an additional coop if you want both. But keep in mind, with both species, once they hit maturity you will likely see fighting if you have several males in the same enclosure. Bobwhites mature slowly, so I assume you wouldn't get trouble with them till next spring, but then I wouldn't keep more than a male and a couple of females in each cage. Coturnix mature quickly and already a 6 weeks you might need to get rid of most males - you should have 4-7 females for each male to prevent over breeding.