New member! Bobwhite Quail

[Kiki]

Welcome to Backyardchickens.com aka BYC!
We are glad you joined our flock.
Jump right in and make yourself at home.

This video will help you learn how to navigate this site:

A good read:
http://articles.extension.org/pages/69065/feeding-chickens-for-egg-production
Current contest:Official BYC Coop Page Contest - Fall-Winter 2017

 

[eastendquail]

Hello there and welcome to BYC!

Oooh I love Bobwhite quail!! I have kept them for over a decade. Very fun little birds to keep!

A few things to keep in mind...you can't free range bobwhites as they will disappear in the woods. They are best kept in large aviaries and need at least 4 square foot per bird. They mate for life with one bird only and pairs need to be kept separate from other pairs during breeding season only to prevent killings and death.

Good luck on your quail adventures, you are in for a fun ride!

Thank you! They are hilarious, as soon as I walk into their pen they're on my head pecking at my hair. I've heard they're impossible to free range I'm just being stupidly optimistic and hope to release them as they reproduce that way I'll always have a few! (Or at least I hope so haha)

 

[OneMountainAcres]

Welcome to BYC! Glad you've joined us!

 

[Hope Hughes]

Hello
Welcome to BYC!!
So glad to have you here!!
Thanks for sharing your story!!
There are many people on here that are ready to help in anyway they can!
Enjoy!!​

 

[MatthewsHomestead]

Hello there and welcome to BYC!

Oooh I love Bobwhite quail!! I have kept them for over a decade. Very fun little birds to keep!

A few things to keep in mind...you can't free range bobwhites as they will disappear in the woods. They are best kept in large aviaries and need at least 4 square foot per bird. They mate for life with one bird only and pairs need to be kept separate from other pairs during breeding season only to prevent killings and death.

Good luck on your quail adventures, you are in for a fun ride!

Woa. So they can't be kept in groups? I have some Texas A&M and the male seems to like all three females. I do see him mount one particularly more than the others....


I'm new to quail too so I'm going to hop on here and learn with you!

Welcome to BYC!!!!

 

[TwoCrows]

Woa. So they can't be kept in groups? I have some Texas A&M and the male seems to like all three females. I do see him mount one particularly more than the others....


I'm new to quail too so I'm going to hop on here and learn with you!

Welcome to BYC!!!!

Bobs mate for life with one bird. During mating season they do not tolerate others in their territory. Lone birds in their areas can be killed. So keep them paired only.

 

[MatthewsHomestead]

Good to know. We pick up some bob chicks Thursday.

 

[007Sean]

If your keeping a large group, you will need a very large, spacious enclosure.
Bob's in the wild pair up, as @TwoCrows mentioned, in the fall, after breeding season they will form coveys to go through the winter months.
In captivity, it's best to have pairs with their own enclosures but you can run 20 -25 birds together, if you limit the number of males to females and have the proper enclosure.

 

[TwoCrows]

X2! I kept mine in avaries and found they did indeed love the winter covey. Come spring however, I got them paired back up and separated them in xtra large breeding cages.

 

[007Sean]

X2! I kept mine in avaries and found they did indeed love the winter covey. Come spring however, I got them paired back up and separated them in xtra large breeding cages.

Yeah, back in the day, when I raised them commerically, I ran about 100 birds to a pen (100' x 150') had a 1:6 ratio male to female. Never had any problems with fighting but did with Ulcerative Enteritus, nearly wiped me out. Fixed that problem by completely re-doing their watering system. Had an old artisan well, pushed a pipe into the side of the well, and had continuously flowing water to all the pens.