Winter laying

[WIchickMama]

Will quail lay through the winter if you get them at 4-6wks now? I am wondering how lesser daylight and cold affect them?

Also, just confirming they lay the most under 1 and then allow down and stop at 2 or do they still actively lay through year 1?

Just trying to figure out when to consider getting some.

 

[JaeG]

Mine still lay most days at 4 years old. If you supplement their light over winter (which you would need to do for winter eggs as once the photoperiod shortens they stop laying) they may 'burn out' faster. I've always given ours a winter break.

 

[FloorCandy]

I raise Coturnix, and I light mine up on timers and they lay all winter. This year I had an over a year old hen lay, sit, brood, hatch, and care for a clutch of chicks all by herself, she still shows no signs of slowing down. She is my only older female Quail that I have remaining.

 

[vall]

It's fine to get them now but you need to supplement light immediately. They need a minimum of 14 hours of light to lay.

In general they can slow down laying after a year, but I have hatched eggs from 3 year old hens who were still laying every day.

 

[WIchickMama]

Ok, so if I don't supplement light then I should wait til spring? I wasn't going to give supplemental light to my chickens, who are young, and just let nature rerun it's course.

Also for their enclosure, can I have 3 sides and the top solid and the front and bottom open? Or is that not enough air flow? I was thinking of having one more side open but with a cover panel if needed. (And when I say open I mean covered in hardware cloth/ground)