Quail Chicks or eggs?

[SuseyQ]

Hi,
I've been searching extensively in all surrounding states for chicks or eggs. So far I've found two places that will ship me 50 to 100 or more chicks. I want to start smaller, I think. Right now we will have 4 pens around 6' x 2' and I really don't think I can house this many chicks in this set up. Does anyone have any suggestions. It seems these chicks take up a bit more space than I had anticipated. Does anyone have any suggestions. I haven't been able to find anything local at this point and I'm concerned about ordering eggs off of e-bay since I'd have to get an incubator. I'm not against an incubator, but I was advised to start small and ensure I liked the quail. Is 50 chicks starting small when they are Cortunix?

Thank You,
SuseyQ

 

[momofseven]

Where about are you?

 

[SuseyQ]

Momofseven,
I'm in southern NM. The only hatchery in state no longer carries quail.

Thank You,
SuseyQI

 

[pkhunter]

Starting with 50 is fine just remember that probably half of them will be rooster. I raise mine 1 rooster to 6 hens. That would give you 4 set's and about 20 rooster to get rid of, eat or sell them. If your cages are 2' x 6' I would divide them in half 2' x3' is plenty of room for 6-7 birds.

 

[SuseyQ]

Pkhunter,
Indeed I forgot that about 50% would be roosters. Your birds do fine in with 1 sq ft. of space per bird? I've heard that 1.5 sq ft is better because it minimizes fighting and stress. Do you ever put 2 roosters together with more hens? How large a brooder do you need for 50 birds? I was thinking 1 area of 3' X 6'. Is that sufficient space. I haven't found much information on brooder size and none of it seems consistent at all.

Thank You,
SuseyQ

 

[pkhunter]

Pkhunter,
Indeed I forgot that about 50% would be roosters. Your birds do fine in with 1 sq ft. of space per bird? I've heard that 1.5 sq ft is better because it minimizes fighting and stress. Do you ever put 2 roosters together with more hens? How large a brooder do you need for 50 birds? I was thinking 1 area of 3' X 6'. Is that sufficient space. I haven't found much information on brooder size and none of it seems consistent at all.

Thank You,
SuseyQ

SuseyQ, I have 2 brooders 1 is 18" X 24" with 1/4" wire on the bottom I leave them in this one for 7-10 days then move to my big one that is 2' X 6' with 1/2 wire. I have 59 in the small one now and I've had as many as 150 in the big one till they get 4 weeks old then they go outside. I tried one time 4 roosters with 20 hens big mistake they killed 2 rooster. You will be better off with 1 rooster to 5 or 6 hens and 1 sq. ft per bird is plenty IMO. Hope this helps you, PK

 

[SuseyQ]

PKhunter,
Yes this helps a great deal. How are you protecting the chicks from drafts in your brooders? If you use wood and hardware cloth what is the best type of wood that won't rot or deteriorate quickly. I know cedar is out. How does one keep the wood edgings clean? I know how to keep the wire clean, but how in the world do you clean the wood edgings that hold the wire in place? What type of quail do you have? I've heard many folks on the site keep larger quantities together, but I think although you need more feeders and watering containers that the smaller arrangements diminish stress. It sounds like you have a pretty big operation. Eventually I want to get there, but I'd like to start out smaller to begin with and get the routine down.

Thank you again for your support. What part of TX are you in?
SuseyQ

 

[pkhunter]

PKhunter,
Yes this helps a great deal. How are you protecting the chicks from drafts in your brooders? If you use wood and hardware cloth what is the best type of wood that won't rot or deteriorate quickly. I know cedar is out. How does one keep the wood edgings clean? I know how to keep the wire clean, but how in the world do you clean the wood edgings that hold the wire in place? What type of quail do you have? I've heard many folks on the site keep larger quantities together, but I think although you need more feeders and watering containers that the smaller arrangements diminish stress. It sounds like you have a pretty big operation. Eventually I want to get there, but I'd like to start out smaller to begin with and get the routine down.

Thank you again for your support. What part of TX are you in?
SuseyQ

I'm from Fort Worth. I raise Coturnix, Jumbo brown and Texas A&M white. My brooder are indoors my small one is in my shop where I have my incubators and the large one is in a storage building. As for cleaning I use a power washer then spray with bleach water let dry. My brooders are nothing fancy just 1"x 10" with wire on the bottom. I included a couple of pictures of my small one.

 

[SuseyQ]

Pkhunter,
I'm familiar with the Fort Worth area. We lived in Mineral Wells for a bit. What do you cover your brooder with? Also what do you keep under the wire? Some type of tray, I assume. That is a lot of little chicks. Do you raise the Texas A & M primarily for meat? I like the idea of using a power washer! That should make the task much easier. What do you do with your birds when you do this?

Thank You,
SuseyQ

I sure wish I had a storage building. We'll be keeping ours in the garage, I suspect. Are quail to smelly to keep on a house patio? Thank you for sharing the pictures.

 

[pkhunter]

Pkhunter,
I'm familiar with the Fort Worth area. We lived in Mineral Wells for a bit. What do you cover your brooder with? Also what do you keep under the wire? Some type of tray, I assume. That is a lot of little chicks. Do you raise the Texas A & M primarily for meat? I like the idea of using a power washer! That should make the task much easier. What do you do with your birds when you do this?

Thank You,
SuseyQ

I sure wish I had a storage building. We'll be keeping ours in the garage, I suspect. Are quail to smelly to keep on a house patio? Thank you for sharing the pictures.

I made a lid out of 1x2 and wire just big enough to fit over the brooder, got the tray at Lowes in the concrete dept $7 I think. I made the brooder so it sits on top of it. I have 4 of these under my big brooder, when done I just dump the poop in my compost pile. Most of my chicks I sell but do raise some to butcher.