Number of quails in my planned coop/run?

[MAHAVISHNUUUU]

Hi there,

How many quails could live comfortably in a 215 sqf run with elevated 32 sqf coop?
What's the preferred ceiling height in the coop/run? Was thinking 7 feet high run ceiling, but have no idea what ceiling height is best in the coop.

Cheers!

Simon

 

[Ozarkhomesteader]

well, coturnix quail can live with 1 square foot per bird, but i always give them 2. other quail like bobwhites or gambels require about 4 square feet per bird. Either way, it is best to give them as much room as you can afford.

 

[dc3085]

We really need to know what type of quail to accurately answer that question. I'll assume you're starting with coturnix.

Coturnix should be kept with 1 male to 4-7 females. It is sometimes possible to house multiple males in the same enclosure but it will lead to social issues and a decrease in thrift for your hens. Stress plays a huge factor in coturnix laying properly and since the males breed so aggressively it's best to keep them in individual groups to avoid males repetitively breeding the same hens to show their dominance. If kept with less than 3 hens coturnix roos will often literally breed hens to death over time, because they breed so frequently. The same thing will happen in enclosures with multiple roosters.

If you're keeping bobs then you'll need enough battery cages to house all your pairs during the breeding season because 200 sq ft is nowhere near enough space to colony breed them.

With that much space I would say your limiting factor would be how much feces you want to clean up and how many divisions you want to install. Coturnix will poo several times a day and a ground cage with 50-100 birds would surely have to be cleaned weekly or even more frequently. Their feces is pretty wet and will build up on their feet leading to multiple health issues if let be. Also feces+dirt+moisture is a good recipe for environmental disease like enteritis or cocci if you have too many birds in one space.

 

[MAHAVISHNUUUU]

Hi, thanks for replies both of you. Apologize for slow response from me, lightning struck my internet disc on the roof so its freedom fried. Ok so then I will give them 2 sqft each for happy birds. Any idea on the size of the house? How many coturnix per sqft of indoor space?

Thanks again

Simon, Lipari