Hello All, I am new to this forum and to the whole bird raising thing. I am currently considering getting a few chickens or quails for my Chicago area backyard. While I was successful in locating several chicken hatcheries in the area, I cannot find that large of a selection in quail hatcheries. If I decide to go with quail, I would probably do coturnix quail. Could someone point me in the right direction? I live in the Chicago area and I found one hatchery that sells 1-day old for about $1.50. But I would like to see more.
When I had coturnix quail, I bought eggs and had them mailed to me. Cheaper, and they hatched very well. They have a short incubation (16 days) and the babies are the best part of keeping quail. Put a cover on the brooder before day 10 though, or you'll be chasing them around the room! Check ebay for eggs.
I agree, purchasing eggs is really the best way to go. You will need an incubator, and if you are a DIY'er, you can do a search for plans on the internet... some can be built with items you can pick up at a hardware store for a fraction of a brand new incubator. One of the things I would recommend is to check your city ordinances. The last thing you want is a neighbor turning you in for raising chickens or quail if the ordinances prohibit them. Good luck, and welcome to the BYC, James
Thanks to both of you. Can a chicken incubator be used in quail? Are there any diy instructions out there to build your own?
Most chicken incubators can be adapted for quail use. Often they sell replacement rails for the bators to switch from chicken to quail eggs. There is actually an entire section of the forum dedicated to building DIY incubators. many of the threads have plans included. There is a link in my sig that details how to use advanced search to access the wealth of info here on BYC. I build these for side cash and for my own incubators. They work great and cost a total of $160 (minus the broken mini fridge but you can usually get one free) Will turn 240 quail eggs or 82 chicken eggs at one time. ETA: Here is a thread that has a few different designs on it to get you started
