Question about waste

[tizzy9]

Hi there! I'm working with my city to revise our rules on the keeping of fowl so I've been collecting data to support my stance that fowl have far less impact than the horses, cows, and pigs that are already allowed.

One of the big arguments that has been raised against me is the amount of waste produced by fowl and I have been able to cite reputable sources stating the comparatively low amount of waste produced by chickens, geese, ducks and turkey. However, I can't find data for quail waste production. Does anyone know the average daily waste production of a quail, specifically let's say a Coturnix?

Thanks in advance!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

No info for you but also as a comparison, tell them how much waste is produced by dogs.

 

[tizzy9]

I'm providing data on cats and dogs (40 lb) as well as the farm animals.

 

[cookiesdaddy]

My rough estimate is 20 adult jumbo Coturnix consuming about 50 lbs of feed per month. At one time I had 60 quails so that's 150 lbs of feed. That's a lot of feed! I don't know how much of that converts to poop - maybe you can find some data there for adult quails. All the poop goes into compost, so none goes to waste. I'm expecting an amazing garden this year.

I know this is not exactly what you're looking for, but I hope it helps a little with your calculation. Please share your end result so we can all learn.

 

[James the Bald]

sounds like your city officials are just plain ignorant. One horse could fill a 5 lb bucket of manure in a day, and last summer, it took several weeks to fill a 5 lb bucket with quail droppings. And I had 35 hens 8 cages. Jeeze, how did these folks get elected?
Another thing. Lets compare birds that are kept in a cage to wild birds. Thousands of wild birds (such as blue jays, robins, cardinals, finches, etc.,) leave "waste" all over the city. Quail in a cage have their waste "contained" in a predetermined area, so are they going to start banning wild birds from flying over their city?
I can understand that some ordinances against poultry have more to do with the noise (such as roosters crowing at all hours of they night), but having an issue of "waste" sounds crazy.
Good luck and keep us posted.
James

 

[dc3085]

I don't encourage people to bother Robby at James Marie Farms very often. He is busy doing great things for us in the quail world and we should all be as mindful as we can of his time. However Robby is probably the only source I can think of that might actually be able to give you a number on how many bags of feed generate how much nitrogen and that sort of info and be able to site sources and provide concrete information. I've had similar conversations with him before about raising quail in the city limits and he has very detailed information on the subject. You can find his contact info on his website, but please don't repeatedly email or call him. He is very busy and will respond as time allows him to.

 

[tizzy9]

So it didn't go as I'd hoped. I presented a handout of pereferenced data but the mayor "felt" that an arbitrary cap of 100 fowl no matter the species or lot size was sufficient. 2.5 acres, 100 birds. 40 acres, 100 birds. 100 turkeys = 100 quail. Better than the 10 we had, but not anywhere near parity with other animals that are allowed in quantities that make fowl's environmental impact look like nothing. Essentially the elected officials decided to go the safe route instead of the route supported by the data and the state poultry expert who was in attendance. SO, I'm putting together a petition and will be shopping it around. Hopefully we can get enough voters' signatures to make them inject some sense into the regs. But I'm not holding my breath.

 

[dc3085]

Thats just silly. I feel for you, hopefully your petition helps you gains some ground.