What should the ideal male to female ratio be with Bobwhite quail?

[Doc Henry]

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I think this is a great plan at worst you have a lower fertility rate, not a problem if your not selling hatching eggs, even though I don't think you'll have any fertility issues. If you ask 10 people you'll get 10 different answers, best for me to learn by experience. People will say you can't do lots of things, but you can.

 

[JJMR794]

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are you reading about coturnix or bobs a lot of folks here recommend 3-5 to 1 for coturnix most recommendations I have seen for bobs or 1-1 or 2-1 imho when the male is in charge of the pen trios work when you have a old hen and a young male it seems like the hen is at the top of the pecking order and pairs seem to work better then

DAVID YOU COULDNT BE MORE CORRECT...

I DONT KEEP LARGE COMMUNITY PENS SO I AM NOT EQUIPPED WITH THAT KNOWLEDGE, BUT IN SMALL BREEDING GROUPS PAIRS ALWAYS WORK, TRIOS SOMETIMES DEPENDING ON THE BIRDS THEMSELVES, QUADS--- BAD MOJO WITH BOBS...

1:3-5 IS A COTURNIX RATIO. 90-95% OF THE POSTS HERE ON QUAIL ARE CENTERED AROUND COTURNIX. DON'T CONFUSE THE 2 AS THEY ARE WAY DIFFERENT ANIMALS. COTURNIX YOU CAN PACK IN LIKE SHEEP OR SARDINES.... PUT 2 BOBS IN A 10FT SQ AREA AND BEFORE THE YEAR IS OVER ITS LIKELY 1 WILL TAKE A BEATIN... THEY CAN BE CHALLENGING TO RAISE AND KEEP WHEN COMPARED TO OTHER SPECES. SUFFICE TO SAY THERE IS A BIT OF A LEARNING CURVE WITH THEM.

 

[grouse]

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I've been reading it about Bobwhites; I don't think any of the sources I checked were referring to Coturnix.

Which would be a safer combo: 5 males and 5 females or 3 males and 9 females?

I'm just a bit apprehensive about having so many males together since I've had very bad experiences in the past with my two roosters ganging up together on hens and killing them and then eventually killing each other, not to mention them both always attacking me the second I would walk into the coop. I realize Bobs are a different type of bird altogether but I'm still wary of that same sort of situation happening all over again.

 

[aprophet]

Is your flight pen grown up with plants and all? Have all your birds been raised together?

 

[aprophet]

The reason I ask is a friend of mine has flight pens and before his grew up with plants and vegetation and all he was running his bobs at 10-12 sq foot per bird after the plants grew up he added more birds to where he has about 5-7 sq foot for bird with the plants that are in his pens there are plenty of places for girls to duck into he was running 2-1 at one point said the hens got tore up to bad he changed to 3-1 he seems to be Ok using that ratio. His pens are really big maybe 75-80' wide X 250-300' long . I think when you go to a smaller flight pen you may need to go up on your sq footage a little. good luck pal

 

[Jplejeune]

I have mine in Breeder cages and usually have an 85 percent hatch rate with 20 hours of light on them. They are 3 hens to 1 roo. I have 144 breeder pens and all do really well at that ratio. I have 100 of other bigger cages that have 3 roos to 10 hens with about the same rate.