Quail Free range?

[ManitobaQuail]

could you clip a wing?

We did it once when we first let them out but realized quickly it really isn't necessary.

 

[ScoutingInTheWoods]

We did it once when we first let them out but realized quickly it really isn't necessary.

Ok thanks for the info

 

[ManitobaQuail]

Ok thanks for the info

Good luck!

(also supervising them for a bit would give you an idea whether they are suited to "free range" or not

 

[Fishkeeper]

I'd really just keep quail contained. The best you're ever going to manage is letting them out to peck around a bit under close supervision, which puts them at a significant risk of being attacked by predators or being spooked into fleeing (even with a clipped wing! They run fast), and then herding them all back in.
It'd be much easier and safer to give your quail that same amount of enrichment by occasionally throwing in a heap of grass clippings or leaf litter. That way, they can scratch and peck around and grab bugs, but they're safely enclosed. You can also give them tree stumps or similar things to hop on. Think about how zoos keep their animals entertained, while not letting them free-range.

 

[007Sean]

could you clip a wing?

My own personal thought on clipping wings on gamebirds is, do not clip! Running and flying are the only 2 ways a gamebird has of escaping a predator.

 

[Halfpasthen]

My quail would quickly be devoured by hawks if I allowed them to free range. Most of them would fly into my neighbors yards. I know this for certain bc I accidentally let them all out once. I had to collect several of them from neighbors yards.

I have one hen who is very tame. Every time I open their enclosure she runs out. None of the others attempt this bc they don’t want to be handled by me. I will allow her to scratch around by my feet as I tend to everyone. Then I give her a few pets and pop her back in the enclosure. She has no fear of me and I think I could bring her into the garden and she would just scratch and eat bugs under supervision. But she would never go back to safety in the evening like a chicken would.
I really don’t think even the most docile of quail have the instincts to stay close to “home” and they would likely just leave.

 

[Kusanar]

I'm going to throw my 2 cents in here. I think even trying it is risky, yes, you might be willing to sacrifice some birds, but, if they get loose, they could potentially find other quail and spread diseases to the native wild ones who will also die. I don't know how well they could interbreed, but a cock could potentially live long enough to breed with native hens and cause issues there too.

 

[Fishkeeper]

I don't think coturnix quail are closely related enough to bobwhites or californians to crossbreed. And even if they did, the offspring would all be slow, stupid, and quickly eaten. For a domesticated breed to cause an issue with a wild breed, the half-domestic offspring have to be able to survive, and I wouldn't trust half-coturnix chicks to survive a mouse attack.
Disease is a concern I hadn't realized until now, though. Best to contain any potential disease risk as much as possible.

 

[muddy75]

A chicken won't teach the quail to come back, no. The problem is the instincts. Quail don't have the instincts to return to a place every night to roost, like chickens do, and nothing you can do (except maybe a very long and difficult project to breed for those instincts) would change that. Quail are not chickens, even if they're raised by one.

and on the flip-side chickens raised with quail won’t go in to a coop or roost at night either! my 3 still sleep on top of a hideaway box cuddled together at night.

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

if you had a chicken or something like it broody and it watched the quail righat as they were born could the hen train them to come back?

not going to work.