I found your information on the incubator very helpful. Thank you. So I shared it on a page I have with the link back to this video. I hope that is okay.
I usually take out my rocker tray put the lid on and heat it up. Once the temp is correct and stable I add the eggs. I load the eggs in rocker tray before I put the rocker trays in. This way it heats back up faster.
Yes, they can get aggressive. The males and the females both tend to peck on any weaker birds. I try to keep plenty of feeders and waterers in the pen where they don't have to compete for food. This seems to help. Good luck!! -Lea
Thanks for sharing. I have 98 eggs in 2 incubators and I've never raised quail before. I'm wondering what your male/female ratio is in the hutches? And, I've read that they can be cannibalistic? Have you had that happen? If so, how did you correct it? Also, what do you feed them? Thanks! I know, 98 eggs is crazy, but they were a gift. I think if I were to order eggs I would've chosen coturnix. Is there a reason you've chosen Bob Whites? :D
Hi! Sorry, just now seeing this!! How is it going with your quail? We've heard that the proper ratio of males to females is one male for every two to five females. We haven't paid too much attention to that in the past. The adult birds will get aggressive with each other. They act about like chickens where the establish a kind of pecking order. They will gang up on weak birds and peck them sometimes (sometimes even pecking them to death). We keep a close eye on them and try to keep them separated, but sometimes it happens pretty fast. We feed ours Ware Milling Gamebird feed. We also give them some wild bird seed mixed in with their feed after they are mature. We also supplement their diet with weeds and plant scraps from the yard and garden. We received our first eggs as a gift as well! We probably would have still gone with the Bob White quail just because they are native to our area. I hope you had a good hatch rate and things are going well!! Thanks!! -Lea
@@backyardhomestead2230 Hi, I did alright hatching 84/90 fertile eggs. Bit of a problem the 1st week, tho. I didn't realize that chick starter was too big for them to eat and lost 13 on day 3. :( Now, I know to pull that blender out of the cabinet! Since then, it's been pretty smooth sailing until recently. They have started picking on one another, so I'm watching videos about harvesting them. I still can't tell male from female. I spoke with the county game warden about needing a permit and he said not for Georgia Giants. They aren't considered 'game birds' and I can kinda see why. When I built my cage for them I made a few mistakes. One being the door's too wide and I end up chasing one around for a good 10 minutes every other day or so. (They're not as jumpy as when I took the lid off the incubator! LMAO! Not at all like chicken chicks!!!) They're still faster than me! But, they always circle back. ;) The other mistake was using too small hardware cloth for the floor. It's a PITA to clean....and quail get out. :)) I will be building another cage pretty soon since they've grown so much and are crowded. Anything you'd recommend in a new build? I would like to keep some for eggs/hatching. Thanks for replying and for the tips.
About 23 days. I take the eggs out of the turner and lay them on the screen in the incubator on day 21. I didn't do this the first time we hatched a batch out and it was pretty traumatic for me! Never made that mistake again!! -Lea
The hens do lay eggs. We keep our males and females together, so the eggs are fertile. We collect them and incubate our own eggs each year. I only remember two times in all the years we have been raising quail when a hen got broody. They don't seem to mind us gathering the eggs at all. Thanks!! -Lea
We got 24 eggs from the neighbor (Rhode Island Reds), and collected six of our Easter Eggers and Maran eggs. Most look fertile (day 11 in the incubator). Our eggs should be fertile, as the Marin rooster should be a registered offender. He makes sure every hen is mated at least twice a day, perhaps more.
@@backyardhomestead2230 So, I should have posted this before the above comment. We were going to buy day old Rhode Island Reds, but the disappeared from Tractor Supply’s web site. I called their supplier and was told May at the earliest. So we decided to grab the 30 year old incubator and fire it up. The neighbor gave us 24 eggs, and we collected about 10 of our Easter Egger, Maran, California Gray eggs. The Maran is daddy, so the mix should be interesting
@@flyboybbq1718 Good luck with them!! My brother keeps chickens with a variety of different breeds of hens and roosters. He is always getting interesting mixes of the babies. It's pretty fun to see what hatches. We don't keep a rooster with our hens in the chickens. We live in a neighborhood and don't think the neighbors would appreciate the crowing. We do have roosters in our quail flock. They don't get too loud.
@@backyardhomestead2230 We are at Day 15. A few eggs look questionable, but most are still dark (candling) and the dark area is increasing in size. Blood vessels are visible in most. I think I read that blood vessels are an indication that the embryo is alive. Do the vessels break down rapidly and become invisible if the chick dies?
Do you do release with the bob whites or eat them ?. A beautiful bird indeed. Like the Californian quails and partridge, grouse woodcock and pheasants. Awesome video. There calling is very soothing.
We eat them. We hold a group over the winter until they start laying eggs in the spring. When we have gathered enough eggs to incubate a batch, we harvest the birds. They are very beautiful and have a soothing call like you said. They also make a lot of fertilizer to use in the garden. Wonderful addition to the homestead!! Thanks!! -Lea
Are you hatching bobwhite or coturnix quail? Just curious because coturnix do better at a lower temperature and hatch quicker. I’ve consistently had 85-90% with bobwhites at 99.5° mean temp 60% humidity then drop to 98.5°mean temp and 70% humidity at lockdown. Info from “The Poultry Site Bobwhite Quail Production” credited to Clemson University and The University of Florida. It’s a good read for beginners and Penn State Extension has some good articles.
Thanks so much for this video!! I just bought a house and am so excited to start raising bobwhites ✨🪺🪶💕 def took notes on the different styles of openings would not have even considered that 😌
Great information on the bobwhite quail raising Lea !!
Some quail sure does sound good now!! *Have a good'nnn*
Thanks!! Definitely a tasty bird!! Wish you lived closer, I'd hook you up!! -Lea
I found your information on the incubator very helpful. Thank you. So I shared it on a page I have with the link back to this video. I hope that is okay.
Thanks for the info. I have had chickens for five years but never quail. I would like to try. I can whistle like a Bob White :)
Awesome video. Thank you, I live in Florida and i am thinking about getting into Bobwhite quail
Y’all are amazing to do so different things
Thank you!! The quail are fun to have around and they provide a lot of good fertilizer for the garden! -Lea
If you put a little bit of apple vinegar in there water it helps a lot to keep alge out there water
Thank you!! I will definitely try that this summer!! -Lea
Or paint them a dark color. The algae grows in sunlight. I pained all my waterers dark green last summer and I don’t get algae any more.
Amazing!!!! Thanks for sharing. 💖
Thank you!! The quail are pretty fun to have around. They make the most beautiful noises in the morning and evening. Thanks again!! -Lea
I love bobwhite! Wish I could keep some :)
Quails are cool 😎 good job 🎉
This video was very informative for me
Thank you! I probably left a lot out, but I covered everything I could think of. I'll do a follow up when the babies hatch out! -Lea
Thank you for this video!
*Leah
You're welcome!! Thank you for visiting!! -Lea
Top job keeping it reall hope all is well 👍 tezza see you at the next 👍
Thanks!! Same to you!! -Lea
I usually take out my rocker tray put the lid on and heat it up. Once the temp is correct and stable I add the eggs. I load the eggs in rocker tray before I put the rocker trays in. This way it heats back up faster.
That makes so much sense!! Thank you! I will remember that for next time!! -Lea
I'm going to get me some quail to keep nice video thanks
Exciting
They are pretty fun to have around!! -Lea
thinking about raising some bob whites as well. Do you have any issues with fighting amonst the groups?
Yes, they can get aggressive. The males and the females both tend to peck on any weaker birds. I try to keep plenty of feeders and waterers in the pen where they don't have to compete for food. This seems to help. Good luck!! -Lea
good. job. thks
Thank you! -Lea
Were do you get those type of quail?
Do the quail lay year round?
Thanks for sharing. I have 98 eggs in 2 incubators and I've never raised quail before. I'm wondering what your male/female ratio is in the hutches? And, I've read that they can be cannibalistic? Have you had that happen? If so, how did you correct it? Also, what do you feed them? Thanks!
I know, 98 eggs is crazy, but they were a gift. I think if I were to order eggs I would've chosen coturnix. Is there a reason you've chosen Bob Whites? :D
Hi! Sorry, just now seeing this!! How is it going with your quail? We've heard that the proper ratio of males to females is one male for every two to five females. We haven't paid too much attention to that in the past. The adult birds will get aggressive with each other. They act about like chickens where the establish a kind of pecking order. They will gang up on weak birds and peck them sometimes (sometimes even pecking them to death). We keep a close eye on them and try to keep them separated, but sometimes it happens pretty fast. We feed ours Ware Milling Gamebird feed. We also give them some wild bird seed mixed in with their feed after they are mature. We also supplement their diet with weeds and plant scraps from the yard and garden. We received our first eggs as a gift as well! We probably would have still gone with the Bob White quail just because they are native to our area. I hope you had a good hatch rate and things are going well!! Thanks!! -Lea
@@backyardhomestead2230 Hi, I did alright hatching 84/90 fertile eggs. Bit of a problem the 1st week, tho. I didn't realize that chick starter was too big for them to eat and lost 13 on day 3. :(
Now, I know to pull that blender out of the cabinet!
Since then, it's been pretty smooth sailing until recently. They have started picking on one another, so I'm watching videos about harvesting them. I still can't tell male from female. I spoke with the county game warden about needing a permit and he said not for Georgia Giants. They aren't considered 'game birds' and I can kinda see why. When I built my cage for them I made a few mistakes. One being the door's too wide and I end up chasing one around for a good 10 minutes every other day or so. (They're not as jumpy as when I took the lid off the incubator! LMAO! Not at all like chicken chicks!!!) They're still faster than me! But, they always circle back. ;) The other mistake was using too small hardware cloth for the floor. It's a PITA to clean....and quail get out. :)) I will be building another cage pretty soon since they've grown so much and are crowded. Anything you'd recommend in a new build? I would like to keep some for eggs/hatching.
Thanks for replying and for the tips.
That was really interesting and informative! Is that a commercial quail feed?
Thanks!! It is "Game Bird Grower Finisher". It is produced by a local company, Ware-Milling. They are based in Houston, Mississippi. -Lea
Hello ,
How many days do bobwhite eggs need to hatch in an automatic incubator?
About 23 days. I take the eggs out of the turner and lay them on the screen in the incubator on day 21. I didn't do this the first time we hatched a batch out and it was pretty traumatic for me! Never made that mistake again!! -Lea
Thanks
You're welcome! Thanks for watching!! -Lea
Whats ur opinion about boob white quail farming?
Fill up the tray with dirt or sand ?
Yes, we fill up the tray with dirt for them to take a dust bath in. It's pretty fun to watch!! -Lea
from. Katy tx
I want but 3 pair how much cost
Do the hens lay eggs? If kept with roosters, are the eggs fertile?
Will any of the hens attempt to hatch eggs?
The hens do lay eggs. We keep our males and females together, so the eggs are fertile. We collect them and incubate our own eggs each year. I only remember two times in all the years we have been raising quail when a hen got broody. They don't seem to mind us gathering the eggs at all. Thanks!! -Lea
We got 24 eggs from the neighbor (Rhode Island Reds), and collected six of our Easter Eggers and Maran eggs. Most look fertile (day 11 in the incubator). Our eggs should be fertile, as the Marin rooster should be a registered offender. He makes sure every hen is mated at least twice a day, perhaps more.
@@backyardhomestead2230 So, I should have posted this before the above comment.
We were going to buy day old Rhode Island Reds, but the disappeared from Tractor Supply’s web site. I called their supplier and was told May at the earliest. So we decided to grab the 30 year old incubator and fire it up. The neighbor gave us 24 eggs, and we collected about 10 of our Easter Egger, Maran, California Gray eggs. The Maran is daddy, so the mix should be interesting
@@flyboybbq1718 Good luck with them!! My brother keeps chickens with a variety of different breeds of hens and roosters. He is always getting interesting mixes of the babies. It's pretty fun to see what hatches. We don't keep a rooster with our hens in the chickens. We live in a neighborhood and don't think the neighbors would appreciate the crowing. We do have roosters in our quail flock. They don't get too loud.
@@backyardhomestead2230 We are at Day 15. A few eggs look questionable, but most are still dark (candling) and the dark area is increasing in size. Blood vessels are visible in most.
I think I read that blood vessels are an indication that the embryo is alive. Do the vessels break down rapidly and become invisible if the chick dies?
Very nice ya
Thank you!! -Lea
We live in SW Louisiana and im really interested in raising quail and or rabbits for meat.
We've had really good luck with the quail. We haven't tried raising rabbits, but we'd like to one day when we get more space! Thanks!! -Lea
Do you do release with the bob whites or eat them ?. A beautiful bird indeed. Like the Californian quails and partridge, grouse woodcock and pheasants. Awesome video. There calling is very soothing.
We eat them. We hold a group over the winter until they start laying eggs in the spring. When we have gathered enough eggs to incubate a batch, we harvest the birds. They are very beautiful and have a soothing call like you said. They also make a lot of fertilizer to use in the garden. Wonderful addition to the homestead!! Thanks!! -Lea
@@backyardhomestead2230 thanks. Great eating. Just found your channel
Do yo sell hatching eggs?
Hey! No, we've never sold the eggs. We just gather them for our own incubator to hatch out next year's group. Thanks!! -Lea
I need a male do you sell?
Oh my gosh your not far from me im in Houlka Ms my bobwhite quail eggs are being brought to me now
Very cool!! I know where Houlka is!! Good luck with your bobwhites!! -Lea
@@backyardhomestead2230 thank you this journey haven't been easy but this is the life I want so I'm not giving up
You need to get the heat right before you put eggs in
I have a hatch rate of 90 % of quail with my temp of 98
I'll try keeping it lower next time! Thanks!!
Are you hatching bobwhite or coturnix quail? Just curious because coturnix do better at a lower temperature and hatch quicker.
I’ve consistently had 85-90% with bobwhites at 99.5° mean temp 60% humidity then drop to 98.5°mean temp and 70% humidity at lockdown. Info from “The Poultry Site Bobwhite Quail Production” credited to Clemson University and The University of Florida. It’s a good read for beginners and Penn State Extension has some good articles.
@Jeffery Aviles
Those water feeders are filthy dirty
Yep, they are clean now. They get nasty quick in the heat of the summer. -Lea
Thanks so much for this video!! I just bought a house and am so excited to start raising bobwhites ✨🪺🪶💕 def took notes on the different styles of openings would not have even considered that 😌