So, I've been thinking... inbreeding?

[urbaner]

How often do you bring in new quail to keep from over-inbreeding your birds? Assuming you have about 30 birds. Or is it better to just eat all your birds and restart with new stock every few years?

Thanks.

 

[Bettacreek]

I haven't had any long enough to really worry about it. However, once I do get there, I plan to only replace roos. It'll be soo much cheaper and easier to "replace" 20% of your population.

 

[smallbluejellybean]

I started off with a mixed lot anyways. Everyone of my buttons came from a different breeder all over Sydney.
Do you think it would be alright to introduce the odd one from different breeders here and there?
I am looking for mutations that I can introduce to my flock to spice the colours up.
Although our selection here in Australia is limited, I am determined to track down as many mutations as I can.
Also there really seems a demand on the rarer colours, here. (maybe a little business for me when my canaries aren't breeding)
Never had this problem with my canaries as different varieties are so easy to get here.

 

[Bettacreek]

Do you have the space and essentials to split your birds up SBJB? Maybe even a colony pen, then a trio/pair pen for each of your favorite varieties.
As for mixing and matching, you really should be careful. Some people say that it's not good to mix them up, because you'll throw off the delicate social balance and cause fighting amongst them.

ETA: What varieties do you currently have?