Californian Quail... housing and feeding requirement questions

[Chookwagn]

I recently have taken possession of a dozen Californian quail eggs, which are now in my incubator.

I have a few questions and am trying to do some research on hows best to house these crazy little things.

I have read housing in pairs is the best way to go..... how much room does each pair need? What sort of environment do they need?

Are they best fed on std quail feed ? Or do they need extra supplements like meal worms etc?

Any advice is appreciated thanks in advance

 

[All4Eggz]

Are they best fed on std quail feed ? Or do they need extra supplements like meal worms etc?

I used to have coturnix, jumbo coturnix, lavender, and pharoah quail. If they are similar to coturnix quail or other common breeds (which I imagine they are), they usually do good on turkey starter feed or game bird starter feed for their entire lives. So called "quail feed" is often mislabled and does not contain ingredients crucial for the health of the birds.
They don't necessarily need mealworms, unless the feed is low in protein. You should be getting the highest protein feed you can find. I recommend 25% protein and above. I fed my quail 28% game bird starter.

As for ratios, I housed my quail not in pairs, but in groups of 1 male for every 3-4 hens. I found great fertility rates from this ratio. IMO, quail males are far more "horny" (lol) than male chickens, so overbreeding is common.

My article might help a little bit: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/quail-for-beginners.76942/


Have you ever had quail before?

 

[Chookwagn]

I used to have coturnix, jumbo coturnix, lavender, and pharoah quail. If they are similar to coturnix quail or other common breeds (which I imagine they are), they usually do good on turkey starter feed or game bird starter feed for their entire lives. So called "quail feed" is often mislabled and does not contain ingredients crucial for the health of the birds.
They don't necessarily need mealworms, unless the feed is low in protein. You should be getting the highest protein feed you can find. I recommend 25% protein and above. I fed my quail 28% game bird starter.

As for ratios, I housed my quail not in pairs, but in groups of 1 male for every 3-4 hens. I found great fertility rates from this ratio. IMO, quail males are far more "horny" (lol) than male chickens, so overbreeding is common.

My article might help a little bit: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/quail-for-beginners.76942/


Have you ever had quail before?

Thanks for your reply...

I have had coturnix before but I didn't keep them very long.

Ok high protein feed it is! Thanks

As far as housing them.... In my research it says that they pair off at the end of winter for the breeding season so I was wondering if that was the best thing to do...? I have also been told that if 2 or 3 females are kept with a male, only the dominant female will lay eggs. I haven't had this confirmed by anyone else tho.

It sounds like they are quite different in their breeding habits than coturnix.

They return to big family groups at the end of the breeding season and for winter.

If anyone has any experience please be free to chip in

 

[All4Eggz]

I have also been told that if 2 or 3 females are kept with a male, only the dominant female will lay eggs. I haven't had this confirmed by anyone else tho.

Never heard of that. In my experience, I used the ratio of about 1 male to 3-4 females, and the females layed eggs fine. So I'm assuming that's false.

It sounds like they are quite different in their breeding habits than coturnix.

Maybe that's why people recommend to pair them. I've never had any experience with californias, so I could very well be wrong. If most people say to put them in pairs, then I'd put them in pairs.

 

[Chookwagn]

Never heard of that. In my experience, I used the ratio of about 1 male to 3-4 females, and the females layed eggs fine. So I'm assuming that's false.

Yes but coturnix don't pair off for breeding like a Californian quail does

 

[All4Eggz]

Yes but coturnix don't pair off for breeding like a Californian quail does

I know, I realized that after posting. According to my research, Californians are much different than Coturnix quail. So that very well may be the case.

 

[FloorCandy]

Yes but coturnix don't pair off for breeding like a Californian quail does

You will want to keep California Quail more like you would bob whites. If you have a large area with a lot of natural hiding spaces, you can keep several pairs together, but I’m talking like 200 sq ft or more, with rocks and bushes etc. you can’t keep a large number in battery cages or a rabbit hutch like Coturnix, they will kill each other. I want to say there’s someone on the site who has a single California Quail living in a large group of Coturnix and it does fine, but it hatched with them and has been with them all along.

 

[FloorCandy]

I used to have coturnix, jumbo coturnix, lavender, and pharoah quail. If they are similar to coturnix quail or other common breeds (which I imagine they are), they usually do good on turkey starter feed or game bird starter feed for their entire lives. So called "quail feed" is often mislabled and does not contain ingredients crucial for the health of the birds.
They don't necessarily need mealworms, unless the feed is low in protein. You should be getting the highest protein feed you can find. I recommend 25% protein and above. I fed my quail 28% game bird starter.

As for ratios, I housed my quail not in pairs, but in groups of 1 male for every 3-4 hens. I found great fertility rates from this ratio. IMO, quail males are far more "horny" (lol) than male chickens, so overbreeding is common.

My article might help a little bit: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/quail-for-beginners.76942/


Have you ever had quail before?

Keeping your birds on high protein starter for their entire lives is detrimental to their overall health. Adults should have something with about 24% or less protein. Many people have great success keeping them on regular chicken layer pellets as adults, but I feed mine gamebird pellets. The excessive protein won’t straight out kill them, but they can develop problems over time. I know it leads to obesity, and I want to say liver disease, but I can’t remember exactly. I haven’t seen anything labeled specifically quail feed that is incomplete nutritionally for them. Some feeds are better than others for sure, but I haven’t seen anything blatantly bad labeled for Quail. Some people have certain preferences, such as some people swear by diatomaceous earth, and some people say it’s bad, so they may choose feeds based on whether it has that or some other ingredients.

 

[All4Eggz]

regular chicken layer pellets as adults

In my experience, chicken layer pellets reduced production in laying birds.

Keeping your birds on high protein starter for their entire lives is detrimental to their overall health.

The Slightly Rednecked YT channel had helped me quite a lot throughout my quail journey. He (Chris) recommended high protein starter for their entire lives, and it seemed to work great for me. They layed very well.


So just to clarify, I was recommending things based on my experience, and what I think would be best for the quail based on what I learned from keeping quail.

 

[FloorCandy]

In my experience, chicken layer pellets reduced production in laying birds.


The Slightly Rednecked YT channel had helped me quite a lot throughout my quail journey. He (Chris) recommended high protein starter for their entire lives, and it seemed to work great for me. They layed very well.


So just to clarify, I was recommending things based on my experience, and what I think would be best for the quail based on what I learned from keeping quail.

I don’t know if that you tuber keeps them for meat or eggs or both, but it’s common to keep for meat and offer high protein their whole lives, because their lives are short, they reach adulthood and are processed. Excessive protein over a long period for adults can cause obesity, gout, and fatty liver disease, and generally shorten their overall longevity. For people keeping quail as livestock, this probably isn’t as much of a concern as it is for people keeping them as a hobby or as pets, and I’ve found starter to be a fair bit cheaper than adult rations, and that probably is a factor for livestock keepers.