Listen , we all love chickens . They give food , entertain us and act as fellow . It ’s not unmanageable to find housing and supplies , and they ’re sound in a lot of urban and suburban areas . And the learning curve for getting started with chickens is fairly low , thanks to a riches of uncommitted didactics . ( You ’re welcome )
But chickens are not the only domesticated fowl that one can keep . And for many , quailcould actually be a better option than chicken .
I know … what ? But chickens are n’t small animate being ( O.K. , bantam are somewhat little ) , so they do have considerable space requirements . hen can get pretty noisy , too . And a particularly flighty hoot can be problematic for crybaby - keepers in modest areas .
Let ’s take a look at some of the benefit quail have over chickens and look into how to raise them .
run into the adorable quail running around Alchemist Farm !
Eggs
First , consider the egg . Yes , quail eggsare very small , and you ’ll need multiple eggs to equal what you ’d unremarkably get from a wimp .
But quail are passing efficient layers . It ’s believed that one bird will put around 300 eggs a yr ( though the quail grocery is too modest to grow any official data ) . And where chicken take their sweet time to start laying , quail usually start up producing eggs around 8 weeks of age .
And quail are very good atconverting the feed you give theminto high - protein eggs . This think of that you drop less to get a particular free weight of quail orchis than you would to get the same weight in chicken eggs . look on the breed of chicken you ’re comparing against , the difference can actually be quite a spate .
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consider the premium quail eggs bring at market or sold to high - end eatery , you could see that these little ball issue forth with big net income potential .
Meat
While backyard wench keeper might not be concerned in raising quail for heart , the small bird do present opportunities in this area for small farmers . ( Though it ’s worth noting that provender conversion efficiency is not one of benefits quail have over chickens . )
The small bird are much easier to harvest than chickens . They ’re simple-minded to cook ( “ It ’s tough to go wrong,”says Mark Bittman ) and have a taste distinctive from wimp , with a mettlesome relish that ’s milder than other game birds , such as grouse or woodcock .
The real kicker , though , is that the boo are unfeignedly dual - purpose . Once an egg - laying chicken ’s high - production point is over — normally around a yr — the chick ’ kernel has toughened . When these hoot are culled(again , not common recitation among backyard chicken steward , but necessary for egg operation ) , the meat ’s utilisation is limited to boiling . Old hens make a great soup , but you do n’t need to fry or roast one .
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But you do n’t inevitably have the same concerns with quail . So after an ball - put bird ’s yield set about to fall off ( also around a year of age ) , the heart will be more various for cooking purposes . Some arrogate it ’s even good fry .
It ’s worth note , though , that , like the eggs , you need more quail sum to make a repast — loosely , two full raspberry are a undivided serving . Pixabay
How to Raise Quail
Right at the top , countenance ’s recognize one thing — more people might be able to get up quail than chickens , as many places that have made chicken - keeping illegal have no such laws about quail on the book . ( You should retard if you have question , though . ) And one of the major welfare quail have over wimp is the dissonance level — they make sound , sure as shooting , but nothing that would chafe neighbour like a hen ’s loud bitch .
You ’ll require to choose a strain to put up . Most favor the Coturnix , but you may also choose between Jumbo Bobwhite , Japanese , Button and Chinese - Painted breed .
You ’ll also necessitate to determine how you ’ll start out raising quail — you could buy chick at hatchery , but minimum are often between 50 and 100 . you could also purchase hatching eggs and necessary equipment . Or you may find a stock breeder who will sell you some birds of the number and years you ’re see for .
Here ’s where we ’re choke to fall behind some wimp - keepers — quail really do well in battery cages , and most the great unwashed keep them up off the priming to preclude worm . ( Though you may treat for dirt ball if you ’d prefer they have some malicious gossip beneath their feet . )
This is a drawback for free - reach enthusiasts , for sure . But for people with quad constraints , the birds ’ minimal requirements—1 square foot per bird — can actually be a plus . you may put adust bathand somebranches in the cagesfor a more natural environment .
You will also have to provide feeders and waterer , which take to be refill day by day . Quail nutritional motivation are not the same as chickens and can motley based on breed and your reason for keeping them . This feeding guide from the Mississippi State University Extensionprovides in - profundity information regarding run quail .
So are quail easily than chickens ? Of course that ’s a ludicrous question — you could elevate either or both with full atonement .
But for some hoi polloi , it ’s reliable that quail have benefits over chickens — chiefly , the fact that they can often be raised where domestic fowl are n’t an option . And for small Farmer , the little wench offer a likely additional revenue current .
