My Coturnix Aren't Laying!

[DavidKerk]

I bought four(two males and two females) ten week old Coturnix quail last Saturday. It has been a week and I haven't gotten one single egg. I'm sure about the sexing and have checked it here on BYC. Why do you think they aren't laying? Thanks!

 

[sphanges]

My first birds took between 1 and 3 weeks to start laying again after I brought them home. A big change like that is going to affect them. They'll get there Also some of my 6 weekers that had just started to lay stopped for a bit and then started again after they got moved to pens with different birds. Once they start to lay properly I haven't had any of mine stop even for pen changes.

In the meantime, check they have enough hours of light, enough protein in their food and make sure there's some shell grit available for when they do start laying. I have found that if I see a hen being mated, it's a sure bet she will be laying within a few days to a week. The boys can tell who is about to lay

B

 

[sphanges]

Oh and I'd also suggest you bump up the male to female ratio as the girls are going to get pretty ragged with that proportion. Maybe get another 4-6 females if you can.

B

 

[DavidKerk]

Thanks for the advice! I might have to get rid of a male.