Texas A&M hatched

[pdawson1983]

I just recently had my first hatch on June 19th. I had 42 eggs. I paid for 24 but was given 48. I was told that many of them were old. Knowing that, I think it was a pretty good first hatch when only 18 hatched and made it to the brooder. Here is my current brooder set up. The temperature is set to 95 degrees F. Do all quail eat so much? They are going through an entire chick feeder full in one day.

 

[veggiecanner]

What size of tub is that?
Nice hatch.

 

[Sycamore27]

That is a pretty good hatch, especially when the optimist in me says that's what? A 75% hatch rate on the 24 you paid for? If they were shipped that would be pretty awesome numbers.

They look like they're growing like little machines.

That sounds about right for the food consumption, they are terribly messy eaters! My 6 were going through a chick feeder a day when they were about 6 weeks old and still growing.

Very neat use of the reptile rheostat! And is that rubber shelf liner under the bedding? Your chicks are lucky in be under such good care.

Cheers,
Jessie

 

[trippy]

nice hatch! i used to raise quail and yeah, they are messy eaters so some of that food might just be mixed in the bottom with the shavings.. you will be up to your ears in quail eggs in no time and i love how the males crow is so quiet compared to a chicken.. had them in the city and they sound no different than a bird outside in a tree although i wouldnt recommend having more than 5 males in your house at a time unless you can sleep through anything!..haha

 

[Quailsong]

Grats!

Quail can be messy eaters, but thankfully they're nothing like ducks! One way to keep the feed consumption lower (but more bang for your buck) is to ferment it. Fermenting helps reduce the anti-nutrients in grains, making food far more digestible & less need to over-eat. (Same thing with humans) Also, with it being moist, you get more liquid into them which helps them grow better.

Fermented Feed can be searched on the BYC for 'FF recipes'. There's a few ways to go about making it, one super easy way is to do a 'simple' ferment by adding a tsp of yogurt into a food safe container (glass or ceramic cooking/crocks/canning jars), stir it up & let it sit overnight. Just strain out the feed & serve wet. You can also leave the liquid for them to sip up (although that may be messy) or even toss it in your compost. Another method is using Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) with 'mother', just a small 'glug' per gallon of feed - making sure to keep the water level higher than the grains (post-soak stage).

Best of luck with the little ones!^^

 

[CircleT]

I keep my feeders on a solid trey, not on the bedding, none gets lost in the bedding this way.....all of my adult quail pens are built where my chickens can get under them, they eat any food wasted by the quail

 

[pdawson1983]

That is a 56 gallon tub made by Rubbermaid. It is the biggest one I could find. I had a tub that was about half that size, but I was worried about having 40+ chicks while they were incubating. I knew it wasn't likely, but I can't help being prepared.

I will have to try fermenting the feed. That seems like a great idea. Maybe if the feed is a bit more moist then they won't be as messy.