Breeding and keeping quails at home for beginners

Even beginners in poultry farming engage in breeding quails on plots, since these birds are unpretentious and do not require a huge area of ​​​​room. Quails have high productivity, while the costs of care and maintenance are minimal. This explains the popularity of these birds. Quails are bred to produce eggs and dietary meat with unique taste. Thus, the profitability of this type of poultry farming is high.

Pros and cons of quails

Despite the bright prospects, before breeding quails, you should find out some of the nuances that beginners often encounter. It is necessary to clarify what conditions are needed for the birds, their feeding diet, so that the business brings regular profits.

Birds are bred to produce eggs and meat, but high productivity is impossible without following certain rules.

Among the advantages of breeding:

• small starting capital;
• quick first profit;
• the possibility of obtaining not only meat and eggs, but also live poultry, which can also be sold;
• the bird is unpretentious in care and has high resistance to diseases;
• weak competition;
• such a business does not require a significant area and a large number of personnel to care for the farm.

The negative aspects of breeding include: increased sensitivity of quails to the indoor microclimate, lighting and noise levels. Farmers should keep in mind that the consumer market has not yet developed and demand is not sustainable, so it will take time to establish distribution of products.

The most popular breeds

Breeding should begin by studying the breeds and determining the direction. To obtain meat, birds of the Pharaoh and Texas white breeds are used. Meat-producing breeds also produce eggs, but to a lesser extent compared to egg-laying breeds. Among the breeds that are purchased for eggs, the most popular are Japanese and English white quail. There are breeds of meat-egg quail:

• Manchurian;
• Estonian;
• tuxedo

The English White and English Black breeds were developed in Great Britain. They are prized for their egg production. Carcass weight – no more than 180 g. Annual egg production – 260-280 gourmet eggs.They are characterized by a low rate of chick development. The ancestor of these birds was the Japanese breed.

The Japanese or silent quail is a small bird. It is distinguished by unusual mobility, but is timid and cannot tolerate noise. They are difficult to grow because they require a calm environment. However, the breed is suitable for breeding at home by beginning farmers. Carcass weight is up to 140 g, egg production is high - up to 310 pieces per year.

The Estonian breed is based on individuals of the English quail and pharaoh species. Males are distinguished by bright plumage, and females are large in shape. The main feature is early egg production, which lasts for a long period of time. Slaughter should be done at the age of 4-5 months, since during this period the meat is most tender and juicy. Egg production – up to 300 eggs per year.

A distinctive feature of the tuxedo breed is its appearance. Quails have a dark back and a white breast. The breed is based on the English black and white species. Carcass weight is no more than 160 g. Egg production begins on the 40th day, up to 300 eggs are collected per year. Birds are sensitive to the microclimate in the poultry house.

Comparison of meat-egg breeds by main characteristics:

Basic requirements for maintenance and care

Farmers should keep in mind that high productivity is only possible if the necessary conditions for birds are created. Diet and some preventive measures are also important, especially for newborn chicks. However, it is worth understanding that it is not difficult to fulfill the basic conditions for care and maintenance.

Lighting

Good lighting is important for quails, as this affects egg production. In their natural habitat, quails begin to lay eggs in the spring, when the length of daylight increases. The final clutch is observed at the end of July. The hormones of the pituitary gland are responsible for this, which are influenced by the length of daylight hours and its intensity. You need to increase daylight hours gradually, adding 30 minutes each time.

Bright light is contraindicated for birds. Therefore, a fluorescent lamp will not work. You should choose a 40 W incandescent lamp or a fluorescent variety.

Humidity and temperature

The recommended indoor humidity should be no more than 75%. At high rates, favorable conditions are created for the development of pathogenic microorganisms, which is especially harmful for chicks. High humidity negatively affects bird health and productivity. If the humidity in the room is too low, quails have to absorb more water to compensate for the loss of moisture from the surface of the body.

The optimal room temperature for quail is 21 °C. When it drops below 16 °C, egg production drops significantly. The general health of birds that have to spend the winter in unheated poultry houses is satisfactory, but it is necessary to prevent drafts and moisture indoors, and also provide them with a proper diet.

Ventilation

The room in which quails will be kept in cages must be provided with supply and exhaust ventilation. When arranging, you should think in advance where fresh air will come from and where exhaust air will be discharged. The air removed from the poultry house should not be returned.

In detail, for every kilogram of quail weight, at least 5 m are required²/hour in summer, in winter – 1.5 m²/hour. The ventilation system must be handled delicately as birds do not respond well to excessive air circulation.

Cells

It is more convenient to keep quails in cages. They can be purchased at a specialty store or made yourself. The shape and size can be chosen at the discretion of the farmer, but it is desirable that at least 100 cm per adult quail².

The height of the cage should not exceed 25 cm, as the birds will jump and may be injured.

The floor should be made with a slight slope, and it is also important to provide a tray for collecting litter. Feeders and drinking bowls are attached to the front wall. Quails do not need perches and nests - birds lay their eggs on the floor. Then they roll out through a special groove. If the livestock is large, then farmers use multi-tiered cages, which they also make with their own hands.

Feeders and drinkers

Feeders are placed outside the cage, as otherwise this will lead to scattering of food. However, birds must have free access to them. The optimal height of the feeder is 6-7 cm. It is advisable that it be made of galvanized steel to prevent corrosion. A plastic pipe with holes for the heads is also suitable for this purpose. The length of the feeder should be based on 0.4 cm per individual.

Drinking containers are made of stainless steel. A prerequisite is exclusively clean water. Drinkers are placed both outside and inside, but they should be raised slightly above the floor surface - this way the water will be much less polluted. Drinkers and feeders should be maintained daily by cleaning them.

What to feed the bird

Quail food should be balanced. Only under this condition will productivity be as expected by the owner.When purchasing feed, carefully read the composition of the mixture. It must meet the necessary requirements.

Adults

An adult should receive daily:

• from grain crops - millet, oats, barley;
• vegetables - boiled and raw potatoes, carrots, cabbage;
• fish fat;
• chicken feed;
• clover, lettuce, wheat germ, sunflower seeds;
• fish flour.

Once a week, quails need to be fed crushed shells, chalk, and crushed shells.

Chicks

Newborn quails are given crushed boiled eggs and cottage cheese. In addition, the chicks are fed starter feed, which contains the components necessary for babies. You can transfer chicks to adult feed starting from three weeks of age. Chickens should only have warm, boiled water in their drinking bowls. During the first days after birth, antibacterial drugs should be added to the water.

Breeding rules

To breed quails, you need to create a quail family. Usually there is a male and three females. You need to purchase young animals at the age of 1-2 months. During this period, it is already possible to determine the sex of the bird.

If you select eggs for incubation, it is important to pay attention to their quality:

• they must be fertilized;
• taken from a healthy quail aged 2-10 months;
• their weight should be 9-11 g;
• Storage duration is no more than a week.

Only under such conditions will healthy offspring appear that can be raised further. The duration of incubation of quail eggs is 17 days. The hatching procedure takes up to 6 hours. Subsequent cultivation continues in a brooder with an infrared lamp.

Quail health

The health of newborn quails largely depends on proper care at first. For beginners, it is important to find out before the chicks appear what the babies will need before they become independent.

Diseases appear for several reasons:

• unbalanced diet;
• lack of competent care;
• lack of light and incorrect temperature conditions;
• poor living conditions.

The owner should be alerted to ruffled feathers, lack of appetite, lethargy and tilting of the head.

Preparation for slaughter and slaughter

Preparation for slaughter involves eliminating water and feed to allow the bird to empty its intestines. This must be done 12 hours before slaughter.

Quail breeding mistakes

The main mistakes made by beginners in poultry farming are improper diet, care and maintenance of quails. Many novice farmers believe that if the birds are not capricious, then there is no need to equip the cages properly and monitor the microclimate. This negatively affects the productivity of the livestock and the health of quails in general.