My Hutch Coop

[Caribear]

Here is the "hutch-style" coop I just finished. Like most things I build, it is a little lopsided and nothing is completely square, but it does the job. Right now it is housing my six coturnix and our silkie Scully.



"hutch" style coop off the ground, provides shade and shelter, with an enclosed section for winter/nesting. The run measures 6' x 4' x 2', with the hutch 2' x 4' x 2' approximately. The roof is slightly slanted to allow runoff, but I'm no carpenter and I didn't really measure it to give you an angle.




The long side of the bottom run is hinged, and swings up for easy access to feeder, waterer, and eggs since the quail just lay wherever. The back wall of the hutch part is also hinged, allowing access to the entire section. There is a long ramp that allows access up to the hutch, and also shade and shelter during the day.

Something I noticed that I did not expect is that after a few days of being in the new coop, my quail are considerably calmer than they were in my old prefab coop. Since the bottom is made of 2x4's laid on their sides, the quail can "hide" a lot more easily when they feel threatened.

It's not as pretty as some of the coops I've seen on here, but it is proof that it can be done by just about anybody.

 

[joan1708]

I'm curious, why do you have quail? To train your dog? I have a brittany that is a city dog, but I take her to a gun dog trainer to learn how to recall, heel. I was checking out his quail. I think he has Bobwhites. anyway, if I lived in the country, I think I would like raising quail for hunters and such. Are they quiet? No crowing? How does their eggs taste?

Also, cute coop.

 

[Caribear]

Thanks. Right now we are raising quail for the pure entertainment value, lol. They are such cute little birds.

They do crow, but it's nothing like a rooster crow. Here is a link to a YouTube clip of one crowing (not my bird, not my video, I don't hold any rights to this at all, just sharing.)

We do live in town, and since they are so quiet, we are able to have them and breed them without driving our neighbors crazy. They haven't started laying yet, so I can't speak to the taste of the eggs, but I've heard they're just like chicken eggs only smaller.

I have heard of people breeding coturnix for dog training purposes, and they would be good for that I think. They hatch in about 17 days and are mature at 6 weeks, and they lay pretty reliably from what I hear. The only problem is that they don't lay in a nest, but wherever the urge strikes them, and they typically don't brood their own eggs.

 

[Erin~TheChickenLover]

The coop looks great!

Congrats and