One of the things that I don't like about most wood cages for quail/chickens is the fact that the wire is normally stapled or nailed to the braces on the bottom of the cage. When the birds poop, then some of it gets on the wood and , of course, smells during certain times of the year. My first cage was built from a sheet of 3/4" plywood. I basically built a box and staped hardware cloth to the bottom of the box, then used a jigsaw to cut holes in the partitions and front of the cage. That way, there is nothing for the poop to land on when it is heading toward the ground. I have two cages and this particular cage is almost 'smell' free while the other (built with 2 x 2's on the bottom with wire staped to it on top of the wood) has high odor in the summer months not to mention poop is more likely to get on the eggs that are laid on the wire.
My next cage will be built totally out of plywood and screws. It is easy and quick to build. If you plan your cuts correctly, you can build a very large quail pen using only one sheet of plywood and then 2 x 4's for legs. And when you cut the openings out of the partitions (wood attaching the back to the front) you can always staple a piece of hardware cloth over the opening and create individual compartments instead of one large community pen. Hope this is clear enough to understand ..........
My next cage will be built totally out of plywood and screws. It is easy and quick to build. If you plan your cuts correctly, you can build a very large quail pen using only one sheet of plywood and then 2 x 4's for legs. And when you cut the openings out of the partitions (wood attaching the back to the front) you can always staple a piece of hardware cloth over the opening and create individual compartments instead of one large community pen. Hope this is clear enough to understand ..........
