Thinking of getting quail

[BReeder!]

@BReeder! thanks for the pictures! Lets me see what I'm in for this month.

The pipe foam is a bit denser and may block more light and ease the eye strain. Rip some off the bathroom drain and try it. Or put a piece of card board on top of the foam?

How is your humidity? Using one of the water trays, I'm bouncing at 45% and 99°F. I will tweak the temp a bit after work. No eggs - that will come Saturday.

Humidity is sticking around 40-45%. I added slightly too much the other day and it went to 52%. I opening the lid a few times (quickly lift off all the way and then laced right back on) and it would drop back to 45% or so without losing much heat (from 99.5 down to 95 or so and quickly bounce right back to 99.5 within less than a minute 0 the fan helps with that a lot). temp is sticking at 99.5 pretty well. It will drop to 99 and then the heater turns on and it goes back to 99.5 - again fan helps maintain a steady temperature throughout and helps raise the temperature quickly. My fan is blowing upward and is mounted just below the heating element. I had to drill several holes in the metal plate that was installed at the bottom of the heating element. No pics right now sorry. If I remember, I'll try to take some when I'm back at the house this evening.

 

[RUNuts]

I got the drop in fan and it also blows upwards. One screw holding it up.

On the mercury thermometer, I taped it to a 4"x8" plastic lid to float on the eggs. Wondering if this is too much or if it should be cut down. It will affect air flow.

Ready for eggs. 45% humidity. Dialed in at 100°F on the mercury.

 

[BReeder!]

I would definitely use something smaller for the thermometer or at least something like plastic mesh that would allow air to flow through - that plastic mesh stuff they use for crafts with yard. Could you simply lay the thermometer on the floor of the incubator? I know they say right on the eggs for the sensor that the incubator has, but the fan should keep the ambient temp fairly consistent throughout the whole incubator - at least that's the idea of the using a fan.

 

[RUNuts]

Plastic mesh = plastic canvas. GREAT IDEA!

 

[BReeder!]

I'm thinking of changing my quail cage plans. I have decided to turn my shed into a combo coop. Chicken in the back 4ft and quail against the right wall with one quail cage outside, but connected through the wall to a cage on the inside. Bottom two cages (1 inside and 1 outside) will be layers, middle cage will be a grow out for youngsters or a bachelor suite (we'll say if I need the extra space for youngsters or if the brooder will suffice for growing them to 8-9 weeks for sorting and culling), the top cage will be divided into 4 breeders each of which will hold 4 female and 1 male at a time.

I am concerned about disease transmission between the chicken and quail. I'm doing some research. My primary concern is whether or not airborne disease a major issue. I'm able to limit physical contact between the birds, their waste/bodies/fluids etc. Mites getting in and transmitting disease between them could be an issue... But that's an issue with wild birds already... Luckily I have managed to avoid mites issues so far though. A little DE in and around the shed will hopefully keep that from becoming an issue.

View: Front Right

View: Back Left

View: Back Right

View: Front Left

 

[RUNuts]

I'll be putting the quail over the chicken area outside. The chickens to clean up the food spillage. The 8' raised cage is massive. Won't be moved much once placed, so I'm figuring out placement.

Several people have kept the quail near the chickens without incident. I'm hopeful.

Is your quail area an aviary type? The quail won't use the nest boxes intentionally. So it will be a sundeck? Interesting design.

 

[BReeder!]

Something I learned today - the biggest scares when keeping chickens and quail together/close to each other are:

Coccidiosis - They both are susceptible to it and can transmit it to each other. Corid treats them both. This is not a case of a species carrying with no symptoms and introducing to a species that will suffer symptoms, but rather both will suffer symptoms. NOT A BIG WORRY to me, since it's precautions are no different than keeping the birds separated.

Ulcerative Enteritis - A bacterial disease that can quickly kill birds and spread through a flock. It is passed through droppings, feed, and water. It is common in quail - so much so that it's commonly known as quail disease. Watch for ashy grey poops as a tell. I'm not certain if chickens suffer from this as well or could be carriers. I'm considering this an important thing to look out for but not necessarily the largest concern when considering housing both species near each other, as the ways is which it would pass from chickens to quail and vice versa should be avoided in my setup - chickens and quail will have dedicated feed and water and they will not have access to each others droppings so long as I do not dump quail dropping trays in the chicken run - the droppings will go to a compost heap away from all the birds.

Coryza - A bacterial disease that is known to be carried by chickens and can be transmitted to quail. Chickens who survive Coryza are carriers for life and can transmit the disease to quail, who are highly susceptible to the disease. This seems to be the greatest fear of keeping chickens and quail in close quarters. However, it is bacterial so as long as the quail do not come in contact with the chickens or the chickens' poop, feed or water there should not be a huge fear in my opinion. I'm certainly marking this as the most concerning fear because of the possibility of it being in my chicken flock undetected and its potential to seriously impact my quail. However, practicing good hygiene is the real preventative here. I could keep the chicken and quail 80ft appart in opposite corners of my yard but carrying the Corya bacteria on my clothes or hands will still be a potential issue.

Ultimately, I am moving forward with my combo coop shed and will ensure hygiene is a priority as well as isolation of the two birds. I will have a wooden wall between the quail and chickens where the quail cages and chicken coop sections meet. I will also place a slanted roof over the outside quail cage to prevent chickens from getting on top of it and pooping. I'll also have a skirt around the space below the outside quail cage so that chickens cannot go under the cage where quail will poop. I'll be share to keep the quail cages clean. Wire certainly helps with that. And I will practice better hygiene with the chicken coop - my current coop is has a deep litter bedding and I will now only practice deep litter in the run. I think I will try sand in the chicken coop - should help dry things out which is effective at slowing and killing bacteria.

 

[007Sean]

Ulcerative Enteritis is a major disease in quail. It can wipe out your whole flock in no time at all, usually occurs in commercial operations but can happen in small backyard flocks.
The best prevention is to have clean water at all times. Fecal matter contaminated water is the main cause for UE.

It's true, you'll read or know someone who raises gamebirds along with chickens and report no outbreaks of diseases but this is a reason serious gamebird breeders don't have chickens and gamebirds anywhere near eachother. They can also contract airborne diseases as well. FWIW and IMO, it's a ticking time bomb.

 

[BReeder!]

Ulcerative Enteritis is a major disease in quail. It can wipe out your whole flock in no time at all, usually occurs in commercial operations but can happen in small backyard flocks.
The best prevention is to have clean water at all times. Fecal matter contaminated water is the main cause for UE.

It's true, you'll read or know someone who raises gamebirds along with chickens and report no outbreaks of diseases but this is a reason serious gamebird breeders don't have chickens and gamebirds anywhere near eachother. They can also contract airborne diseases as well. FWIW and IMO, it's a ticking time bomb.

I appreciate the honest opinion. I am no expert. I am working within my means and doing what makes sense for me, basing my decision on research. I am certainly not raising the chickens nor the quail as a "serious gamebird breeder," and could understand how my set up would be drastically different if that was the goal. I do it as a hobby and to show my son where his food (at least some of it) comes from. It all a learning experience.

 

[BReeder!]

I'll be putting the quail over the chicken area outside. The chickens to clean up the food spillage. The 8' raised cage is massive. Won't be moved much once placed, so I'm figuring out placement.

Several people have kept the quail near the chickens without incident. I'm hopeful.

Is your quail area an aviary type? The quail won't use the nest boxes intentionally. So it will be a sundeck? Interesting design.

There's no nest box for the quail. The quail will be in 4 cages. Each cage will have a mini coop section that is essentially a large bird house to offer a place to hide and to huddle together in cold weather. The mini coop section will have a wooden floor also to allow them a chance to get their feet of the wire. I'll have access to clean it from the front.
There's three cages going to be inside the shed and one cage outside that will connect to one of the inside cages through a small door I'll put in the shed wall. The two connected cages that are connected will be for my layers, offering them access to sunlight for quality egg production with limited supplemental light. I'll offer supplemental light in the shed, but it will be on the ceiling and the bottom cage will be rather shaded by those above it. Top cage is closest to the supplemental light source, and this will be my breeder cage. They too need quality egg production and I don't want them outside exposed to any potential dangers. I'll keep them highest in the coop to ensure they are hardest for a predator to get to and to prevent anything from a cage above contaminating them. After all, me breeders will be my best stock.

Here's a picture of the first cage I built, which will be the one to go outside. I'll be raising it about 18-24" off the ground. The floor is slanted to the front so eggs will roll out. I haven't attached covers for the egg collection area yet. I'll be attaching two boards hinged to the front edge that I will be able to flip open to collect eggs. I may have posted this picture previously in this thread. Sorry if it's a duplicate.