Button quail

Our newest venture in farming/feeder breeding. I just picked up 15 straight run button quail that are 3-4 weeks old. They are very similar to mice. Their incubation takes the same amount of time which is 21 days. They are fully mature and able to breed in 6-8 weeks. Babies are about the size of a bumblebee and grow to about adult mouse size. They also come in a variety of morphs like silver, white, tuxedo, Vader, and cinnamon. They should be a little higher in protien and lower in fat than mice. My vet recommended trying them.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...8068da436d.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...f2e39c5e73.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...8504c27fe5.jpg

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Never heard of them...might be too cute for me to feed, lol. Love to know how the "smell" compares to breeding mice though?

I will let you know how they smell once they get settled inand cleaned up some. They are the smallest of the quail species and way to small for humans to eat as a meat bird. The jumbo coturnix quail is much more suited for that. Other names for the button quail are the Chinese blue breasted, king or painted quail.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Never heard of them...might be too cute for me to feed, lol. Love to know how the "smell" compares to breeding mice though?

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So time for some updates:

I'm down to 14 now. One had a bum leg and got fed off a day or two after I got them. An adult corn made it quick work. They have started to feather out nicely and really showing their colors.

Care: They are pretty easy to care for. Their food is relatively cheap for the amount you get and since they are so small they really don't eat much. I've started to hand feed them so they are a little less jumpy. A large bag (maybe 50lbs) of game bird feed is only about $20. Care has to be taken when opening their enclosure as they will jump up several feet then take flight, but they are easy to scoop up.

Smell: They do produce some smell but it is more a sweet/sour smell vs the ammonia smell of mice. The smell is very similar to chickens or other farm animals. The down fall is they just poop anywhere they want vs a rodent that will typically us the same corner for excrement.

Water: This has been my biggest issue so far. I tried to use a gravity fed water bottle with a quail base. They will either splash the water out onto the bedding or kick bedding into the water. Then I tried elevating the water on a 2x4 with the same results. Those two tries I was doing daily or every other day bedding changes. Next attempt was to put the water in a shallow Tupperware container to contain the splashes and keep the bedding out of the water. That has helped and now I'm getting 3-4 days between bedding changes. My next attempt will be to train them to use water nipples. My chickens have had these same issues of making a mess with the gravity fed water.

Noise: When I'm near them tending to the mice and asf I can typically hear very soft gentle constant calling that you can only hear from about 10' away. Every so often maybe a couple times a day you can hear one really going off that you can hear on another floor and the other side of the house. Even when they do their loud calls it's a very nice and relaxing call. It's more of a whistle vs the screech of a parrot.

I hope you update this after you've cycled through a generation or two. I'm interested in starting some variety(not yet determined) of quail and would appreciate the perspective of a fellow reptile enthusiast.

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Originally Posted by John1982

I hope you update this after you've cycled through a generation or two. I'm interested in starting some variety(not yet determined) of quail and would appreciate the perspective of a fellow reptile enthusiast.

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I will keep updating this thread as things progress. What is your intended use for the quail? I got this species for feeders but soon plan to get another species to use as human food for both eggs and meat.

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Originally Posted by 67temp

I will keep updating this thread as things progress. What is your intended use for the quail? I got this species for feeders but soon plan to get another species to use as human food for both eggs and meat.

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Feeders and I wouldn't mind eating the eggs and meat myself if I overproduce - why I'm leaning towards Coturnix at the moment.

Coturnix or jumbo coturnix are probably the best all around choice. They are supposedly a very hardy and easy to care for bird. They also don't require a permit in most states since they aren't a native species like the bobwhite or California quail.

Using the water nipples made a world of difference in how often I had to clean their cage. One thing I did learn is that there are nipples for use in vertical and horizontal applications. If a vertical one is used in a horizontal position it leak like crazy.

They finally started laying last night and produced a nice green egg with tiny brown spots.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...a2be4248_o.jpg

Thanks for the update - I'm really interested in this project. I've been thinking about raising fowl of some kind but my husband absolutely refuses to allow me chickens or ducks. Soooo, I've been looking at larger quail (Coturnix) but curious about these as well. I know you wouldn't get much meat out of them, but eggs would be just as good depending on the production. Double bonus points if they work for feeders :)

Currently I've been collecting eggs every day. Once a week eggs go into the incubator. The first batch of eggs is on day 19 and just starting to pip. Prior to pipping the eggs will move and you can hear little clicks as the baby pecks at the shell.

Are you planning to feed these on a regular basis or as more of a once in a while thing? I would love to breed Buttons and if I could use extras as feeders that would be awesome. They seem a bit small though, and I wonder if you would have to feed more than one per feeding.

These will be feeders. These are the smallest of the quail species. Their size as an adult is on par with a jumbo mouse. So a quail that is a few weeks old is equal to a hopper mouse. I have a bunch of smaller colubrids and pythons so the size is good for them. For a ball they would be good for hatchlings and juvies.

The quail have been a learning experience. The first few clutches that hatched out I was around a 30-40% hatch rate. It might have been just because the hens were just starting to lay but it's hard to say. After the first few hatches I started to soak the eggs in water for a few minutes and spray them down with hydrogen peroxide. The last few days of incubation humidity is really important. If they start to pip and humidity is to low then the membrane inside the egg will shrivel and constrict the baby. The first 5-6 clutches I was gassing for feeders.

The last few clutches I have been around 80% hatch rate and keeping them to grow out. I've had a few accidents that resulted in several babies dying. The biggest factor being heat and ventilation. One night I accidently turned off their heat lamp. They made it through the night but the following evening 4 passed probably to the prolonged exposure to cold. Another time I went to give them a bath (they poo on each other or get pasty butts) while I cleaned their cage. In under 2 minutes I lost 6, they were in ankle deep room temp water. Sometimes they will all sleep in a pile. Ones at the bottom of the pile will either be crushed or suffocated by the others. Babies lost don't go to waste. The carpets seem to be the most eager for them.

Updates? How has this been going?