What's your opinion on free range quail

[RUNuts]

I’m confused when you say they don’t come home. What’s the point of a Johnny house then? I’m sure there some attrition during acclimation.

they are wild birds. They roam & sleep where ever they are at when the sun goes down.

Chickens come home to roost. Quail aren't chickens.

The house is to give them the option of getting out of the rain. Not all of them will use the house. In fact, a very good chance, none of them will. They lay eggs wherever they are when they are roaming. Like ducks, they give you an Easter Egg hunt every day.

I fully support you learning by doing. Please share what you learn.

 

[TexasBlues]

ok. I was under the impression coturnix are considered domesticated.

“Thousands of years of breeding and domestication have guided the bird's evolution. Humans domesticated quails for meatand egg production; additionally, quails can be kept as pets. Domesticated quails are commonly kept in long wire cages and are fed game bird feed. The most common domesticated type is the Coturnixquail (also known as the Japanese quail).”

I appreciate the naysayers, but I’ll raise quail under the assumption they can be trained to recall.

 

[Nabiki]

I’m confused when you say they don’t come home. What’s the point of a Johnny house then? I’m sure there some attrition during acclimation.

Quail tend to bed down wherever they happen to be a night. If there's a little shelter there, they'll take it. Quail prefer several small shelters over one big shelter in their enclosure.

Chickens will come home to roost even if they free range. They have a place they consider home and will return there every evening.

 

[Nabiki]

ok. I was under the impression coturnix are considered domesticated.

“Thousands of years of breeding and domestication have guided the bird's evolution. Humans domesticated quails for meatand egg production; additionally, quails can be kept as pets. Domesticated quails are commonly kept in long wire cages and are fed game bird feed. The most common domesticated type is the Coturnixquail (also known as the Japanese quail).”

I appreciate the naysayers, but I’ll raise quail under the assumption they can be trained to recall.

They are domesticated as in they usually won't have a heart attack when you pick them up and they are used to humans. That doesn't mean that they don't have their own behaviours and needs. For example, there is a line of domestic foxes. That does not mean that they act or have the same needs as dogs. If you don't give a fox a place to burrow, it will destroy your furniture trying to dig a burrow.

To repeat what @RUNuts said, quail aren't chickens.

 

[RUNuts]

ok. I was under the impression coturnix are considered domesticated.

Domesticated does not mean they will return.

do·mes·ti·cated
adjective

1. (of an animal) tame and kept as a pet or on a farm

“Thousands of years of breeding and domestication have guided the bird's evolution. Humans domesticated quails for meatand egg production; additionally, quails can be kept as pets. Domesticated quails are commonly kept in long wire cages and are fed game bird feed. The most common domesticated type is the Coturnixquail (also known as the Japanese quail).”

This states that domesticated quail are kept in cages. It is cheaper to let them roam, so cages must be the accepted method for a reason. Each animal has different needs and sheltering requirements. For quail, a cage. For chickens, a coop.

I appreciate the naysayers, but I’ll raise quail under the assumption they can be trained to recall.

I'll guess this will be a short experiment. A day? Maybe two. I've had quail fly the coop and they were difficult to get back. Unfortunately, the dogs got most of them. They didn't go far but were hard to locate. One took me a week to get out of a brush pile in the chicken area. The ones that went through the chain link fence were met in the dog yard and I found feathers.

I recommend a couple of brush piles to keep them content. How are the rats and snakes in your area? They will like the brush piles also.