Quail as pets?

[SpringChicken2]

I have always wanted to have chickens since i was 7 years old, but in the neighborhood I live in, the HOA doesn’t allow them, or any poultry However, I’ve recently been looking into quail and how they are quiet and perfect for urban farming. I only want to hatch 2. Is it possible to keep them half inside and half outside? If I ever get to hatch them, I might be able build a pen for them, but I will take them inside at night so they won’t get eaten.

 

[Fishkeeper]

If you only want two, you should get button quail, which are very small and should be kept completely indoors. Coturnix, the other variety which make good pets, are social and need to be in groups of more like half a dozen.

 

[le_bwah]

Japanese quail do better in flocks. If you're dead set on getting only 2, better off buying two hens than hatching your own and risking getting boys (they crow!).

Quail can't be free-ranged easily—they will not come back home at night like chickens. If you want them to be outside, you will need to build them a predator-proof pen that is their permanent home (they don't much like to be moved).

Button quail do well in pairs (don't know about same-sex pairs) and are kept indoors—those might be better birds for your situation.

 

[Little Jerry Seinfeld]

Above posts are right, you can have a small pen set up for outside forays if you want and then keep them inside the most of the time... but they do get bothered when changing pens and will stop laying eggs for up to a week each time you move them in or out.

They are a bit stinkier than chickens but I have mine(coturnix) inside and they make pretty good indoor pets. Since mine tend to either be eaten by racoons outside or fly out and escape, I am keeping them inside from now on.
As long as you have a very secure pen they will do great outside though, most people keep them outside i believe.
Definitely get at least 4 hens i would think so when they invariably pick on each other it wont be so bad. They don't need as much space as you would think, but the more yoy can give them the happier they will be and less likely to fight.
there are great articles on here saying what they need for space etc.
You wont regret having quail! They are a really delightful cute pet, with little drawbacks.

 

[CoturnixComplex]

I have always wanted to have chickens since i was 7 years old, but in the neighborhood I live in, the HOA doesn’t allow them, or any poultry However, I’ve recently been looking into quail and how they are quiet and perfect for urban farming. I only want to hatch 2. Is it possible to keep them half inside and half outside? If I ever get to hatch them, I might be able build a pen for them, but I will take them inside at night so they won’t get eaten.

I keep quail because I can't have chickens They are wonderful.

As others have said I would not get just two (and if you tried to hatch just two eggs chances are you would end up with one really lonely baby quail). I would aim for 3-4 females and a male if you want. A male with enough hens *usually* doesn't crow that badly. Usually when they are load they are calling for girls, so that is something to be aware of.

 

[2 many chickens]

I'd go for button quail. They are small and can easily be kept indoors. I have many and enjoy them. They are a look don't touch type of bird.. very beautiful and entertaining to watch. They don't do well outside when the cold temperatures come, so best kept indoors. And if you get eggs, get way more than two, they don't always hatch.

 

[Sara L]

If you are wanting to interact with them, coturnix would be better. They will also give you usable sized eggs. If you don't want to touch them, just enjoy their beauty, button quail would work but they don't like being moved. They do lay but the eggs are so tiny it's not really worth the effort to eat them.

Coturnix can be friendly if you raise them right, but it also depends on the bird's personality. I have heard rare accounts of button quail being friendly and able to be handled, but those all were hand raised from hatching.

 

[Broodygranny]

Do you have a screened in porch? I have heard of people keeping a few caturnix hens on a screen porch. You just make sure the floor is sealed, then put wood chips down. You get eggs, and pets!

 

[Jpat]

If you are wanting to interact with them, coturnix would be better. They will also give you usable sized eggs. If you don't want to touch them, just enjoy their beauty, button quail would work but they don't like being moved. They do lay but the eggs are so tiny it's not really worth the effort to eat them.

Coturnix can be friendly if you raise them right, but it also depends on the bird's personality. I have heard rare accounts of button quail being friendly and able to be handled, but those all were hand raised from hatching.

I hatched mine in the incubator , They live in a big pen in my living room so huge amounts of contact with people and if you make eye contact with them they hit the ceiling out of pure terror, i tried so hard too haha