So WHEN DO button quail start laying??

[arlee453]

This is as bad as waiting for the first chicken egg....

I have 10 button quail. I'm pretty sure at least 3 are males, from their white bibs under their chins, and at least 5-7 are girls, judging from their lack of splashy coloration and no bibs.

They were hatched on 6/9. That makes them 9 weeks old today. They are eating a mix of about 75% cat food ground up fine, 25% chicken starter. They also get the seed the parakeets spill, and also some green seed heads and millet spray. They have a nest box and also a tray full of parakeet sand/grit for calcium and dust bathing, which they love to do. They seem happy and healthy - no pecked feathers, and no fighting. They just run around 'beeping' all day and scratching around looking for whatever they can find that the parakeets spill for them.

Everything I read says expect eggs anywhere from 6-8 weeks.

So.....WHERE oh WHERE are my button eggs????

Sigh....

 

[jaybme]

My Bq hatched May 9, and started laying at 9 and 11 weeks. They just hatched their first clutch today- don't give up hope!

Jaybme

 

[Lophura]

Quote:
Patience is a virtue. Give them time, they'll breed when they are ready. I suggest in addition to what you are doing is to also add some live food to the diet, perhaps some clumps of grass or plants to simulate natural environment in the aviary.

Dan

 

[arlee453]

12 weeks...still waiting....

 

[fancyfowl4ever]

Wow, your buttons must have a protein overload....... they have the needs of a regular laying hen, not that of a gamebird. Switch'em over to 17%-18% layer crumble and the parakeet seed, see what happens then.

Many people are under the impression Buttons and cortunix quail have the same high protein needs as Bobwhites and other wild "real" gamebirds. Fact of the matter is buttons and Cortunix have been domesticated for a long time and thus are closer to a chicken in needs then gamebirds.

 

[arlee453]

thanks fancyfowl - I'll try lowering the % protein by mixing in layer pellets over the next few days.

 

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

I've been feeding mine the 24% gamebird feed and I have one hen that started laying 8/10 - at about 8 weeks. I don't give them any live treats or anything, other than some canary seed and tomatoes every now and then. Light is important - they need about 16 hours a day.

 

[monarc23]

as long as they're getting proper lighting, and all that great feed you're given them just be pacient *pats on back*


my pair was suposedly laying for the breeder when i got them at like 7 weeks old, however almost 3 weeks later is when i finnally got my first eggs from them...now she's on her 17th eggi think it is now, daily

. She'll stop laying soon though ebcause she's an outside bird with her mate in a nice shelter/hutch enclosure so the lighting will change and she'll stop but all indoor buttons as long as they have proper lighting should lay soon and frequently (daily) for the rest of their lives (1-2 years normaly).

I read that they need 18 hours of light on them a day.