I've had ducks for about a year, and we're wanting to move now so that we can start producing our own food. We have dogs and a pretty wild ten year old boy, but for the most part, he understands to leave animals alone. Still, he will run around and act like a normal ten year old boy, lol.
We're looking for birds that are social or at least relatively easy to tame. We do want to interact with them. They also need to double as a food source, so I don't know if smaller quails like Button Quails would be good. But I don't know anything about quail, so, if you guys think they're still good meat birds, don't be shy about adding them. It is important that the birds AT LEAST be social and good meat birds. Good egg production is a definite bonus, but chances are, all the eggs will go to the other animals anyway.
I live in Texas, and we will be staying in Texas. In the northern areas, it can get pretty cold, even icy, but generally speaking, it's hot. So we need quail that thrive in the heat, but won't be killed if they have to spend a few weeks in cold, possibly icy weather. However, I do plan on finding some way to insulate the coop anyways, and if it gets really cold, I plan on adding in a heat source. Just so you know, "really cold" would mean snowing or below freezing.
I'm still debating on if all my birds will be kept together, but chances are, they will just be free ranging together, and each type of bird will have a different coop/run. (So, one for the ducks, one for the chickens, one for the quail, and one for the guineas.) Other than quails, I'm going to have ducks, chickens, guineas, and possibly turkeys.
The final decision comes down to what breeds do well with other species of fowl. So if a breed is known for aggression toward other species, don't even list it, unless you're 100% convinced that I'll like the breed so much I'd be willing to spend time and money fencing off a section of the property solely for them.
Okay! With that said, I like anything rare, so, even if they don't meet the above criteria, if you know of a rare breed, definitely give me some info. Even if I can't own them, I'd like to know about them.
I'd also like to know all the specifics. I want to know warning signs, what to do and not do, how to best predator proof the coop/run, the specific space requirements for a) The Coop, and b) The Run, chick care, what to feed, what not to feed, etc. Thank you everyone!
We're looking for birds that are social or at least relatively easy to tame. We do want to interact with them. They also need to double as a food source, so I don't know if smaller quails like Button Quails would be good. But I don't know anything about quail, so, if you guys think they're still good meat birds, don't be shy about adding them. It is important that the birds AT LEAST be social and good meat birds. Good egg production is a definite bonus, but chances are, all the eggs will go to the other animals anyway.
I live in Texas, and we will be staying in Texas. In the northern areas, it can get pretty cold, even icy, but generally speaking, it's hot. So we need quail that thrive in the heat, but won't be killed if they have to spend a few weeks in cold, possibly icy weather. However, I do plan on finding some way to insulate the coop anyways, and if it gets really cold, I plan on adding in a heat source. Just so you know, "really cold" would mean snowing or below freezing.
I'm still debating on if all my birds will be kept together, but chances are, they will just be free ranging together, and each type of bird will have a different coop/run. (So, one for the ducks, one for the chickens, one for the quail, and one for the guineas.) Other than quails, I'm going to have ducks, chickens, guineas, and possibly turkeys.
The final decision comes down to what breeds do well with other species of fowl. So if a breed is known for aggression toward other species, don't even list it, unless you're 100% convinced that I'll like the breed so much I'd be willing to spend time and money fencing off a section of the property solely for them.
Okay! With that said, I like anything rare, so, even if they don't meet the above criteria, if you know of a rare breed, definitely give me some info. Even if I can't own them, I'd like to know about them.
I'd also like to know all the specifics. I want to know warning signs, what to do and not do, how to best predator proof the coop/run, the specific space requirements for a) The Coop, and b) The Run, chick care, what to feed, what not to feed, etc. Thank you everyone!
