Category Archives: Quail – Feeding

Quail Brooding and Feeding

2014-05-05 - Brooding Quails 14

At some stage in my life I obtained some plastic collapsible storage crates, which were very handy when moving to New Zealand and I always knew that I would find a good use for them at some stage . When I arrived in New Zealand and started quail farming and was looking for a brooder system, immediately the storage crates came to mind – dimensions 600 X 400 X 200 mm.

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These are easy to clean and sterilise as I use an all in all out system. My breeding batches are always about 30, 60 or 120 chicks, so I commence with 20 chicks per crate. I split them at two weeks of age into two crates, where I then leave ten in each crate until about six weeks of age. As I sell many birds at five weeks of age as well as slaughter many of the males at five weeks of age, I normally end up with six to seven birds per cage at six weeks, even though ten is still comfortable.

I begin by lining the crate with an old towel, of which I have plenty (my wife chucks them out, when I think they are still perfect).

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Then ad my food and water drinkers made from used plastic milk bottles

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The lamps, I purchased from a second hand shop $20 for 20, including 100 W globes, and used off cut plywood from cages I build to mount the lamps.

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Then add a frame, made from off cut wire netting and pieces of wood

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The last two items just lie on top of the crate and are easily removed to inspect and work with the quails. Now add you babies

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When too cold, I drape an old tea towel (discarded by my wife) over the netting part

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At two weeks of age, when I split the groups in two, I put them on wood shavings

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The other difference is that for the first two weeks, when the babies are still learning to eat and drink, the feeders are designed in such a way to encourage them to walk into the feeding area. Now at two weeks when they are clever enough, the feeders are designed in such a way as to encourage them to eat from the outside and not enter the feeders any more, as they start scratching now and waste food and dirty the water too much. I also raise the feeders by putting it on a piece of wood, to prevent them scratching the shavings into the feeders. Self feeders and drinkers are again used plastic milk bottles

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Now ad you babies

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Managing up to 20 crates in this way, I find very easy. Each Brooder can be accessed easily by lifting the top and inspecting each chick. Feeders and drinkers last for days in the beginning and about once every two days towards the end.

Lastly the feeding. I mix a 28% Chick Starter Mash to which I add 1 boiled egg per 100 g for the first week and increase the mash by 100 g each week for one boiled egg, i.e. 100 g mash per egg for week one, 200 g mash per egg for week two, etc until 700 g mash per one egg for week seven, where after I switch to a 22 % Layers Mash. I also always add some cod liver oil at a rate of 5 g per Kg to all feeds, over and above the normal vitamin – mineral premix.

Exactly the same system is used for my chickens, partridges, pheasants and guinea fowl – I only move them out a bit faster, as the become too tall for the 200 mm crates.

 

 

 

 

 

 

1833 – Early maturing, high producing Coturnix coturnix

2014-04-26 - No 18 - 5 2014-04-26 - No 33 - 12014-04-26 - Eggs from No 33 - 2

Following the phenomenon of exceptional early maturity experienced in two of my Coturnix coturnix birds, and many research projects that support a positive correlation between early sexual maturity and total production, I have decided to commence with a new breeding line i.e 1833. The reason for the name is that the Male, No 18, commenced crowing as early as 18 days of age and the Female, No 33, laid her first egg  at 33 days of age and repeated it on days 34 and 35, where we are at now. The family tree of the two birds, include Italian, White and Tibetans on the Male side and Pharoah and Tibetan on the Female side – so a real out cross would result from this mating with hopeful maximal heterozygosity.  The male also comes from a group of Italian females that produced exceptionally and at one stage produced 100% for 18 weeks in a row.  All these Italian hens are still producing at the 90%+ level and is in excess of one year of age. It would be the intention to continue to select for early maturity and total production as primary selection criteria.  The Male and Female respectively weighs 170 and 185 g at five weeks of age, and I shall guard to breed this line too big, aiming at females of 220 – 250 g and males 200 – 230 g. Very early days, but exiting times and I cannot wait for the first progeny of this mating, and as No 33 is already laying eggs, it wont be long.

 

Hen lays egg at 33 days of age

2014-04-24 - Egg by 33 day old hen

Coturnix coturnix Quails never fail to impress. Today I have had a hen laying an egg while she is only 33 days of age.  What the reason or significance of the early maturity is, I do not know. This hen is also from the same batch that produced a Male crowing at 18 days of age.

 

Back Yard Farmer’s Poultry Self Feeder

I did not know what to do with some wood that was always in my way in the workshop area.  The wood was from an old bed I dismantled some time ago. I am building a new chicken house to accommodate some of the Anconas who are now temporarily in the rabbit hutch. While doing this, I was again made aware of the spillage and waste of layers pellets as result of the bad table manners of the chickens. Suddenly I had a use for the old pieces of wood –  I made a chicken feeder the Backyard Farmer way!

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I designed it in such a way that it holds 15 Kg of pellets – enough for five birds for at least two weeks (so I can go on holiday). Having ordered some water nipples, this, together with the new feeder, will virtually make the chickens self maintaining. (I wish!)

 

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I have also designed it in such a way that with a few adjustable hole positions in the lifting arms, it could be set that it works for any size poultry – from Quails to those Jumbo Cornish Crosses.

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The proof of the pudding was to see what the intelligent Anconas think of  it as they have been in the rabbit hutches for only one day, and will be there for a short time while I am busy constructing their new luxury apartments. I was a bit worried because I was sure they would not appreciate another change in amenities and environment.

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While the boys were measuring each other up for size, the girls were interested in more important matters – FOOD! It took them less than one minute to decipher this piece of “modern” technology and enjoy a feast.

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ENCEPHALOMALACIA – BAD COMMERCIAL FEED

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In New Zealand I have fed my Quails a diet “corrected ” for Quails starting off with a  commercial Chicken Starter Mash. This seemed to have worked fairly well as the growth results were acceptable. As my enterprise expanded it became more time consuming hand mixing feed all the time and I inquired with various feed companies, as to the availability of a specialised product for Quails, to no avail. I have however found a standard product off the shelf from a reliable feed company that claims, on the bag, to be adequate for quails. Having purchased it and used it for the past weeks, the results are shockingly bad. A specific batch of Quails, consisting of about 80 birds,, received this diet from day one. I normally supplement young Quail diets with boiled eggs for the first two weeks, which I have also done for this group.

Apart from excessively poor growth and survival performances I have two birds showing severe signs of Enephalomacia (Vitamin E deficiency). The inherently low level of vitamin E in the the cerebellum makes it very susceptible to Vitamin E, Selenium and Antioxidant levels. The problem is normally associated with diets high in unsaturated fats as often found in poor quality fish meal as well as poorly processed blood and bone meal. Also the rations are normally supposed to be adequately supplemented with a vitamin and mineral pre-mix appropriate for the specific application. I dare to say it was not the case with the product I have purchased at high cost.

The signs of Encephalomalysia is imbalance, staggering and uncontrolled movement. Treatment is by supplementing Vitamin E and/or Selenium in the water and feed. Should the brain damage not be too severe, remission is possible.

I also have a video of two birds affected but cannot upload it – if you are interested I could Email it to you. I am busy setting up a YouTube account which will resolve this problem in future.

 

My diagnosis of the deficiency was unfortunately a few days too late as I firstly did not expect it from the purchased diet and secondly I initially thought it to be Wry Neck, a genetic disorder for which I select and cull very strictly against

The performance for this group are as follows (Figures in brackets depicts all previous batches):

Average mass at 21 days of age for top 20 % of birds – g – 108 (113)

Average mass at 21 days of age for the bottom 20 % of birds – g 57 (78)

Birds alive from eggs placed – % – 42  (69)

As can be seen from the above results there was a great number of bids affected as can be seen in the large number of underweight bids as well as the high mortality, even though only a few show the excessive diagnostic behavior found int the two birds photographed. Interesting enough the one bird showing signs was by far the heaviest bird in the group (Maybe the fast growth required higher levels of nutrients??) I am now supplementing the entire group with Vitamin E and hopefully shall save the rest not too severely affected.