is this a good cage for button quail??

[Ducklove334]

I have this homemade birdcage that was once home to Kenya, our handraised european starling, and then to the two doves before they went outside.

anyways, it is about 3 1/2 feet tall, and around 2 1/2 feet wide.

I've got no more use for it, well we're going to a poultry sale on saturday and someone ALWAYS brings in button quail.and I was looking to possibly finally get some.

I am gonna lay the cage on it's back, it has full side door, basically the front side opens up. so that would be on top, this would give them alot more room than of I stood it upright.


I'll have to get pics later, probly tomorrow but does it sound like it'd work????

 

[backyardchickenfarmer]

Quote:
I'm sure it would work but we would need to see pics. for a definate answer

 

[NancyDz]

You may want to keep the door on the side as when you put your hand in they fly straigt up or "bonk" and with the top opening they will get out and are very difficult to catch, They are fast little suckers! How many are you planning on? Also how big are the spaces between the bars? You may need to put something down
on the floor so their little feet don't fall through. I covered mine with shelf liner.. works good. I just switch it out to clean it. You can use hardware cloth but no larger than 1/2" and 1/4' is probably better, just hard to clean.

Just an FYI, once they get comfortable, they do make some noise. I assumed they would be more quiet but they do call fairly loud and even in the middle of the night

Nancy

 

[Akane]

A front opening is easier unless you can only open part of it to put your hand in. Opening the entire top is guranteed an escape sometime. You didn't really say what it's made of? What would the buttons be standing on? I prefer solid bottoms but a fine mesh will work. If it's mesh you'd then need a pan under it.

 

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

I've kept pairs in a small bird cage and they were ok. Whatever you use, just make sure it's easy to clean because they'll poop it up fast.

 

[Ducklove334]

they usually sell them in groups of 10-15, I'd be getting the smallest number possible.

the cage is made of wood, the mesh is the small, I wanna say quarter inch metal mesh,except for one side(the bottom if the cage,wich would be the side if I layed the cage down, and would be against the wall) is 1 inch poultry wire.I would put a board or something on the bottom,with shavings or dirt.


I've asked this before, but I forgot what people said.

what do they eat fr being so little??

how can I tell the difference between male/female??

what knd of waterer do they need, a bowl or an actual waterer?

annnnnnnnnnnd should I one day decide to incubate eggs, what temp. humidity?, and how long til hatch?

 

[shelleyd2008]

what do they eat fr being so little??
The adults eat game bird chow, meal worms, seeds like millet, basically anything. Just make sure you offer them grit and oyster shell or cuttle bone.

how can I tell the difference between male/female??
ALL males (escept for white, pied, and splash) have red/rust/pink colored vent feathers. The females DO NOT have this.

what knd of waterer do they need, a bowl or an actual waterer?
They can use a bowl, but they will walk in it and get everything wet. Mine have a pop bottle waterer, and I use parakeet waterers for the babies.

annnnnnnnnnnd should I one day decide to incubate eggs, what temp. humidity?, and how long til hatch?
Button eggs take from 15-18 days, sometimes longer. They take 100 degrees and 50% humidity days 1-12, then 99 degrees and 70% humidity day 12-hatch.

Also, if part of the cage is 1" wire, you'll need to cover that, with smaller wire or wood or something. They are small enough as adults to escape through 1"wire.

 

[AK_Button_Mama]

Quote:
I will second that. I just tossed some wire over the rabbit cages to keep the buggars in! I kept finding them out then saw how there were getting out!

 

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

If the babies are under a week old, you might need to grind the feed up a little bit so they can eat it. I've found the crumbles are too big for them for the first few days.

 

[Akane]

My slate and silver male (I know they are male I've seen them mating and hatched eggs from them) do not have red vent feathers. They have no red feathers whatsoever. It can be hard to tell the gender of the lighter colors and I make no gurantees on the ones I sell until after 10weeks.