artbykarenehaley
Crowing
Our button quail have hatched, we have ten healthy little chicks and one who may or may not pull through. We love watching them, they are ecurious and playful, a delight to watch.
Knowing these little birds mature fast and wanting to avoid a situation where they might get aggressive and begin harming each other, what advice can anyone give for being ready come maturity time?
I will say that I don't know what the ratio of male to female is yet, the chicks are only two to three days old. I am willing to do what I can to accommodate my birds and am prepared to commit a good amount of time to their care. I am a stay at home mom, able to monitor the birds fairly well. What I want to know is, Is it best to allow them to pair up on their own, or is it likely that I will have aggression issues? Do i separate them all near maturity time and experiment with which birds get along after I am positive if who was a male and female?
I know these birds are monogamous, but are often kept in one male multiple female groups. I'd prefer to keep them in pairs if I can, as I want to keep careful track of who the parents are when I hatch future chicks. I won't know how many males and females I have yet, but I already have enough coops to house six pairs (twelve birds) and the supplies to build more housing for any who aren't able to pair up.
I live near enough to a breeder that I'd be able to find mates for my single birds. I do not intend to re-home my birds, I would rather bring in a few more as I am building a small breeding flock and would prefer genetic diversity. Hopefully I do not have all males, ten females at once would be expensive but I would be willing to do it if necessity calls for it.
Knowing these little birds mature fast and wanting to avoid a situation where they might get aggressive and begin harming each other, what advice can anyone give for being ready come maturity time?
I will say that I don't know what the ratio of male to female is yet, the chicks are only two to three days old. I am willing to do what I can to accommodate my birds and am prepared to commit a good amount of time to their care. I am a stay at home mom, able to monitor the birds fairly well. What I want to know is, Is it best to allow them to pair up on their own, or is it likely that I will have aggression issues? Do i separate them all near maturity time and experiment with which birds get along after I am positive if who was a male and female?
I know these birds are monogamous, but are often kept in one male multiple female groups. I'd prefer to keep them in pairs if I can, as I want to keep careful track of who the parents are when I hatch future chicks. I won't know how many males and females I have yet, but I already have enough coops to house six pairs (twelve birds) and the supplies to build more housing for any who aren't able to pair up.
I live near enough to a breeder that I'd be able to find mates for my single birds. I do not intend to re-home my birds, I would rather bring in a few more as I am building a small breeding flock and would prefer genetic diversity. Hopefully I do not have all males, ten females at once would be expensive but I would be willing to do it if necessity calls for it.
