Quail question

[Shelleyb2010]

What all do y’all feed your quail just game bird feed or do you feed them other things as well? Right now I only feed game feed but was curious if you could feed them other foods.

 

[Nabiki]

A good game bird crumble is all they need. It's fun to give them treats, but make sure that the treats are no more than 10% of their diet.

 

[BrandonsBirbs]

For nutrition, just a gamebird feed, although we ferment ours. For our layers I also feed them a small handful of mixed grit once a week. My feed does contain the right amount of calcium but I have noticed if they have grit once a week their eggs are much shiner, and seem to pass easier for them. Could just be nothing more than a coincidence I suppose.

For fun,
we feed them dried mealworms,
any live insects my daughter finds outside,
we have some mixed corn they love but only allow them a tiny amount of,
during the summer they LOVE the queen ants that are on the ground after they've done their nuptial flights,
some greens from the garden or spares from inside (always check what's okay),
sometimes spare fruit or vegetables if they're allowed to have them.

 

[007Sean]

For nutrition, just a gamebird feed, although we ferment ours. For our layers I also feed them a small handful of mixed grit once a week. My feed does contain the right amount of calcium but I have noticed if they have grit once a week their eggs are much shiner, and seem to pass easier for them. Could just be nothing more than a coincidence I suppose.

For fun,
we feed them dried mealworms,
any live insects my daughter finds outside,
we have some mixed corn they love but only allow them a tiny amount of,
during the summer they LOVE the queen ants that are on the ground after they've done their nuptial flights,
some greens from the garden or spares from inside (always check what's okay),
sometimes spare fruit or vegetables if they're allowed to have them.

I know it's impossible to prevent them from consuming insects, especially if they are in a big ground aviary but insects and earthworms carry parasites that can infect your birds.

 

[Klaudia]

I also have their dry feed in the coop and ferment a different feed as a treat for them. Whenever I make scrambled eggs I feed the shells back to them along with vegetable and fruit that I have or scraps. In the colder months I buy 25-50 lb bag of milo sprinkle about 1/2 - 1 cup 4 times a week as a scratch feed. I also add flex seed and qinoa to any prepared food I make for them.