New Quail owner.

[Sess]

I'm a very new quail owner but not so much to foul in general I had 5 turtle doves that adopted me from the wild that I care for about 9 years, but quails are new for me and I just want them to be happy as can be.

I had a Minature rabbit that passed in Jan. of old age and I just wanted to know if his hutch is a good starter home for them right now ( I have four Coturnix Quails all females since we just want eggs.) They look to be pretty young maybe 3-4 weeks old. The hutch is about a medium size with a 1/4 wired floor and flat floor housing which is enclosed, I just cut out a little box to put in there with some wood shavings so they have a place to rest their feet more and forge. I have a shallow container with water in it and a multi feeder with game feed starter with 28% protein. But they are inside my house right now I live in Louisiana and I thought it was to hot to put the hutch outside for now and I don't have any sand for them yet but I plan on getting some soon. Do they have to run around outside? I'll post pictures of the hutch tomorrow, I want to get a runner extenstion for them maybe a large one but the factory made one for the hutch is just to expensive, I have a perfect spot in my yard which is shaded by the balcony in the very hot afternoons but still gets sunlight. And I don't really want to buy one for the fact that I don't think it's sturdy for it to be outside, I have two pits and 3 cats but they don't go in my yard and my female pit is already very very protective of the quail chicks she attacked the other pit for glaring at them, motherly instincts I guess haha. Which is good since we had a possum come around because we have two chicken coops around the block and the pits got a hold of it in the late night... Poor thing picked the wrong yard. Would it be better for my dad and I to just build a runner instead? will it be cheaper? We aren't new to this we actually built a hamster mansion cage when I was younger from scratch and my hamsters lived well into 5-6years. The quails were a spurr of the moment idea but when I saw how healthy their eggs are than chickens and my family can really use em I thought it was the perfect idea. Also they are quite jumpy, I'm trying to hold and cuddle them right now but they are so scared to death of me I'm worried if it's because I'm handing them to much? (3 times a day for about 10 minutes, I also sit infront the hutch and coo over them Idk I feel happy again I've been depressed since my rabbit passed he was my baby and now I have more babies ahhh sue me already!)
Sorry rabbling, anyway, I'm open to any suggestions any at all, I want to be a good quail owner because I can really see myself wanting more of these darlings.

 

[pdawson1983]

Quail need about 1 sq foot per bird. A rabbit hutch seems to be a pretty common accommodation for quail. If you plan to have a run you need to predator proof it. Quail are a tasty snack for many predators like foxes.

I love handling my baby quail. They may not love it as much, but doing it gets them used to it. I love it when they sit on my hand and stick their necks out to get a better look at me.

Do you know what breed you have?

 

[Sess]

No suggestions? D:

 

[Sess]

Quail need about 1 sq foot per bird. A rabbit hutch seems to be a pretty common accommodation for quail. If you plan to have a run you need to predator proof it. Quail are a tasty snack for many predators like foxes.

I love handling my baby quail. They may not love it as much, but doing it gets them used to it. I love it when they sit on my hand and stick their necks out to get a better look at me.

Do you know what breed you have?

I'll take a picture of them right now.

 

[pdawson1983]

I have heard of people using a rabbit waterer for their quail if you still have one left over. And sorry, I missed that you mentioned they were coturnix quail.

If it was me I would use the rabbit hutch as long as there is 4 sq feet. No need for a runner.

 

[Sess]

I'll take a picture of them right now.

There you are, fyi about the ribbon the tinest one got a little jumpy when I put the box in last night I tried to put gently scoot her to the housing area but poor thing struggling squeezed through the bars and the weird thing is she ran to my siamese cat xD I wasn't so worried with her with my siamese because she was raised around other animals dogs/cats/birds/bunnies...(my thumper tried to hump her we made jokes saying we can call them Cabbits! haha) Anyway I think their [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Coturnix but I could be wrong.[/FONT]

 

[Sess]

I have heard of people using a rabbit waterer for their quail if you still have one left over. And sorry, I missed that you mentioned they were coturnix quail.

If it was me I would use the rabbit hutch as long as there is 4 sq feet. No need for a runner.

It's okay, I still have his rabbit waterer I'm going to set it up above the water bowl I have around so it doesn't soak through the tray on the hutch and helps save the water, They really love playing in the bowl then drinking it, it's fun to watch. xD

 

[pdawson1983]

Definitely coturnix. It looks like that hutch may be big enough for four quail. Once they get a little bigger you won't have to worry about them slipping through the bars and teasing the cat. The ribbon is a great temporary fix though.

I live in Georgia and I keep my chicks outside in hot weather. They should be fine outside in that hutch as long as they have enough water.

Quail also love dust baths. Look up dust bathing on BYC. Or click here Dust Baths

 

[Sess]

Definitely coturnix. It looks like that hutch may be big enough for four quail. Once they get a little bigger you won't have to worry about them slipping through the bars and teasing the cat. The ribbon is a great temporary fix though.

I live in Georgia and I keep my chicks outside in hot weather. They should be fine outside in that hutch as long as they have enough water.

Quail also love dust baths. Look up dust bathing on BYC.

That's good to hear! We plan on taking the doggies to the park Saturday and collect sand for them to dust bathe in, so if they still get stinky I'll put them either on my patio balcony or outside under the wooden balcony, I don't want them to attract cats in the yard my male pit has take 4 of the nine lives of cats already I dunno what's wrong with him but I do know the female at this point will defend the chicks over him. xD

 

[Sess]

Definitely coturnix. It looks like that hutch may be big enough for four quail. Once they get a little bigger you won't have to worry about them slipping through the bars and teasing the cat. The ribbon is a great temporary fix though.

I live in Georgia and I keep my chicks outside in hot weather. They should be fine outside in that hutch as long as they have enough water.

Quail also love dust baths. Look up dust bathing on BYC. Or click here Dust Baths

I have another question I have my eldest Quail that I got the first time (My brother bought two males when I asked for females so we exchanged him) She always seemed calm and sleepy compared to the others who are curious/alert, Is she just lazy/stressed or is she sick? She does eat and drink when she wakes up and she also forges through the box, Are they known to take naps through-out the day, They are all cuddled together around her now she's nuzzling her beak in her feathers. They are 3 weeks old I believe.