We recently added Coturnix (aka Japanese) Quail (pictured enjoying a sand-bath, their favorite past time) to our backyard flock of chickens and ducks, and I’m looking forward to some little spotted eggs as soon as they get settled from the move.

They aren’t too fond of us just yet, but quail are relatively easy to take care of and very efficient egg (and meat) producers. A quail egg weighs around 10 grams, or around 8 percent of body weight, as opposed to around 3 percent of body weight for chickens.

They also take up very little space, and could even be raised on an apartment balcony. I’ve read suggestions of 5 quail per square foot, but 1 bird every 2 square feet is much more reasonable and humane. Just make sure you keep the cage clean, because their droppings contain more ammonia than chicken’s and can get smelly fast. I had to modify our chicken coop to accommodate the quail hutch, but it resulted in a tighter overall feel to the space that I’m very happy with and we have room for about a dozen more quail. Also, Francis the friendly poultry woman at Callahan’s General Store, suggests cutting a door into a medium sized cardboard box to create a nesting area in your hutch. They are pretty shy creatures and need their privacy in order to lay.

Why aren’t more people doing this?

UPDATE: Our quail are on Treehugger! Also, if you are introducing new quail into your flock, do it in a neutral cage because quail are very territorial and you can end up with some nasty quail fights. Lesson learned! If your quail are wounded, apply some Rooster Booster to their wounds to discourage further pecking by the rest of the flock. Like chickens, quail can become cannibalistic and aggravate injury if the blood piques their curiosity.

Fore more info on raising backyard quail download:
Texas A&M Quail (pdf)