The "are quail worth it" answer thread

[Wifezilla]

Any pet that is so useful ranks waaaaaaay above our poxy family dog for being worth it lol!

My were beating the heat today by burrowing under the straw in their pen until they reached cool ground. I came home to 4 straw igloos

 

[RunnerDucks]

For me, they were not worth it.
I couldn't stomach any longer killing 10+ birds for one meal.
Nobody ate the eggs because they were difficult to open.
The taste of coturnix is just not good, IMO, unless you load it up with stuff like sausage and butter, which is a shame, seeing as how healthy their meat is in comparison to others.
And you're lucky to get $10 for 200 eggs on ebay most of the time.

I loved having them as entertainment though. Very little can compare to the joy I got from watching them after I put down new hay. The way most people raise them though, they're missing out on this.

And as a side note, carbohydrates do not cause heart disease. A person can get heart disease by eating carbohydrates, but only if they're binging on them to the point of obesity, increasing the strain on their heart and/or giving themselves diabetes. And if that's how they got it, it's not what they're eating that's giving it to them, it's how they're eating it (way too much). The same thing could be said for red meat... that it's not eating it that's the problem, it's eating too much of it, and unfortunately, with both carbs and red meat, Americans tend to be eating too much. But with red meat, unlike carbohydrates in and of themselves, red meat has the added disadvantage of high levels of saturated fat, which builds in the arteries. Too much red meat = too much saturated fat = high blood pressure = heart disease.
The main cause of heart disease in our society is eating too much of the wrong things, not exercising, and smoking, not one demon food group.

 

[aprophet]

Quote:
X2 here. they are much cheaper then therapy LOL I have hunted most of my life processing for me is much like second nature just a chore to do so I can eat

talk about cholesterol I skin them and wrap with bacon then grill them MMMMM. the one rule I have learned about birds is there are no rules what works in Va. may not work in Cali something that works in texas may be out of place in alaska I use general guidelines that folks give and adjust them for my location and my birds.

 

[Wifezilla]

red meat has the added disadvantage of high levels of saturated fat, which builds in the arteries. Too much red meat = too much saturated fat = high blood pressure = heart disease.

Wrong. This IS what we have been told over the last 30 years, but the "lipid hypothesis" was based on some very bad science by one man (Ancel Keys). When his shoddy study was put to the test the claim that saturated fat causes heart disease fell apart every time.
"It all started, of course, with the infamous Ancel Keys and his Seven Countries Study, which tracked the fat consumption and heart disease levels of various nations. It was named for the seven countries that saw an increase in heart disease cases correspond with increased fat consumption, but it should have been named the Twenty Two Countries Study for all the data he omitted. Data, I should mention, that demolished his hypothesis of fat intake causing heart disease."
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/saturated-fat-healthy/
"The saturated fat found mainly in meat and dairy products has a bad reputation, but a new analysis of published studies finds no clear link between people’s intake of saturated fat and their risk of developing heart disease."
http://liberationwellnessblog.com/2010/02/05/study-fails-to-link-saturated-fat-heart-disease/
Of course I have a TON of data, but these are 2 easily linked articles to get you started. If you really want the history of the dietary recommendations and where it all went wrong, check out "Good Calories Bad Calories" by Gary Taubes.

As for the quail eggs, they make these...

Very little can compare to the joy I got from watching them after I put down new hay. The way most people raise them though, they're missing out on this.

Totally agree with you on this one. I started with mine in a wire cage. The difference in their health is amazing. Once I got them on the ground, no more broken feathers, no more bald hens. No more pacing. They are not nearly as flightly. I would never put them on wire again.​

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

Here is a great reason to raise quail, "Buffalo" quail leg 1/4's

Steve

 

[zaylinda]

Thanks for the great answers again!
Let's try not to get too sidetracked with the carbs vs meat argument, ok?

Does anyone else have some numbers on why (or why not) quail work for them?

Also, I think RunnerDucks brings up a good point - those with a larger family would have to kill more for a meal. For my family of two, two to four quail is ample for a meal - but those with larger families have to kill a lot more birds, making a larger bird more economical for them.

-Zay

p.s. we still aren't on the sticky - maybe if more than one person requested it it might get done...

 

[aprophet]

Quote:
WRONG!! on the avg. they lay 200 eggs per year. so 200/ 364 = 0.55 eggs per day avg. which would only leave you with 53 or so eggs every 14 days.


#2

assume hatch rate of approx 75%
= 18-20 quail every 18-20 days max production
4 quail per 2 person meal = 4-5 meal every 20 days.
or approx 7 quail meals a month

You will loose 5% of these chicks to random things.

quail eat 1/2oz food per day

Every study that has been done on meat type quail has an avg.. of the quail eating 1/2oz food per day.. that is from day old to 8 weeks old.. the avg will me ALOT higher when they are held past 8 weeks of age!​

I appreciate your input, Riffecreek, but I do wish you had put it more politely.
My current quail (uglyducky babies) have been laying every single day since they were 8 weeks old, not even missing a day when I packed them into a crate and drove them four hours away into a new home - not when I changed their food - nothing seems to phase them. Therefor I felt it appropriate to use 1 egg/day in my calculations.
I have so far not lost any babies, though I am sure I would if I were producing on the level I am writing about.
In addition, I believe I got my 1/2 oz/day number from a coturnix-for-eggs website. (though the website I believe I got it from seems to be broken, so I can't check)

Also, Buttercup Chillin, I agree with your assessment of portion sizes. I find a single quail to be quite sufficient... but I am a dedicated bone-nibbler. My Partner doesn't agree so much - usually he eats all he feels he can get off a quail, and then I have the other half!

but we both agree the flavor (and the satisfaction of raising our own food) is well worth it!

Thanks All! Keep the answers coming!​

i can,t prove it but I think there are 2 kinds of coturnix and I have some of each one kind does not care what blows up or runs at them or whatever they are going to lay an egg . the other ones the shy ones stop for almost any reason I changed from starter to layer same texture feed but about half of mine quit laying for a coupla days 3-4

 

[GBov]

I think Aprophet might be right about the two different kinds of coturnix. I have 6 females that lay every day despite all my changing of their cage and two boys but that still leaves me with three that dont lay and I dont think are boys as every now and then I get an extra egg or two. If they are the easily put off kind then that would explain it.

Is there any way to tell who is laying which egg?

Mmmmmmm

buffalo quail quarters

 

[La Mike]

Lmao I have read all these posts and will tell ya'll this
I have raised quail all my life and everyday I can eat quail for supper is a grand day
All the talk about cost versus doesnt even really matter
Just like some people like sirloin steak and some like a ribeye
Its all a matter of opinion from one to the next
I love quail meat and if I have to butcher 10 to eat (which its always more mmm mmm lol) thats what I,ll do
I dont raise coturnix only Bobwhite
I love hearing them sing watch them play and thinking all the while what a great dinner they are going to be

SO Raising quail is worth it to me and to anyone who loves quail as a pet or dinner
If you are raising them as cheap food forget it lol
Time and effort could be considered not worth it then, otherwise I know a whole bunch of peeps can agree on the fact it is

Bobwhite IS heaven on a plate

Steve what time is dinner

 

[TomNY]

I kept two colors penned by color. Every eighth generation I made up two breeding pens of cocks on hens of the other color. Chicks were seperated by color for seven generations until I did it again. Slow growers that wouldn't make market weight in time were culled before hatching eggs were collected from their hatch. Tom

If you want bigger birds you can limit lighted time to slow sexual maturity and make them grow longer. In that case you would need dedicated breeders. Larger birds didn't get me enough premium to go through the extra bother. T