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Quails
Well i mainly keep coturnix quails or sometimes known as japanese
quails, They are very simple to breed and keep and they are also
human friendly, Well mine are anyway.
Some people breed them to eat, Also the eggs are supposed to
be a delicacy but i would have to eat about 50 of them to fill
me up, After I've kept them as pets i couldn't eat them at all
now.
Unfortunately they only live for about 2 years if your lucky
they also stay on the bottom of your aviary, They don't normally
fly but they are capable. when they get scared or spooked they
tend to fly upwards but cannot go far. My quails sometimes rome
around my garden under strict supervision by me.
Foods
I feed my quails layers pellets bought from jollyes in a 25kg
sack, They also like a bit of greenery such as lettuce,grass,dandelion
and they like to peck around the floor eating dropped bird seed,
Most important to give them fresh water daily.
Housing
These birds look good on most aviary floors they don't attack
other birds and sometimes my java sparrows and budgies try to
get a ride on there backs, bit of harmless fun. They can be housed
in a pen or a run but make sure it has a roof in case they get
spooked and a small indoor area to rest and hide away, Sometimes
they will sit outside all night rather them than me. i would keep
them at a ratio of 2 or 3-1 That's 1 male to every 3 females to
stop arguing and noise between them.
Breeding
I love breeding these guys in my homemade incubator, First of
all obviously you will need a female and a male at a mature age
to produce fertile eggs and you should get 1 egg per day, I normally
get mine at about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, does that ring a
bell?. You can store these eggs for up to 10 days pointy end downwards
in a cool place.
click on image for the bigger picture.
Incubating
I usually put several eggs in at one time and make a note of
the date, I also put an A and a B on the eggs in marker pen because
i manually turn them also if the eggs are soiled give them a gentle
clean in warm water, Once the incubator as reached its normal
temperature i then place the eggs in with the letter A facing
upwards this is my way anyway. My incubator fluctuates between
98oC and 102oC
This to me has never caused any problems i also use a small tub
of water for a little humidity I have never measured the humidity
in my incubator but there are recommendations on the web for this.
I routinely turn my eggs by hand between 3 and 5 times a day
at least 3 times a day if times tight, Usually in the morning
first thing then dinner time, tea time and just before i go to
bed, I know its a chore but i am working on an auto turner for
my incubator.
I keep turning the eggs for 14 days then i stop and add a second
tub of water to raise the humidity then i leave well alone, by
the 17th 18th day my eggs usually start to pip and hatch, This
could take up to 24 hours sometimes. I never help the chicks hatch
out that's a big don't.
If the eggs don't hatch leave them for another 3-5 days just
incase.
Brooding
I use an old fish tank for this, ideally place 2 red glow bulbs
in just incase 1 blows in the night.
I use a small water tray and feeder with chick crumbs scattered
around as well, They need to stay in there for 3-4 weeks because
they are still dependable on heat, Then i gradually reduce this
heat using a dimmer or lowering the wattage of the bulbs. Normally
about this time they will start growing into there adult feathers
and you should be able to sex them.
You can tell if there is enough heat for the chicks by there
behavior. but the first few days of life the temperature is similar
to my incubator, You could leave them in the incubator for the
first day if you prefer this will dry them and make them fluff
up, But i usually transfer them to my brooder at the same temperature.
See my
chicks and brooder page 2 >>>
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