How To Keep Quails In Zambia

What are Quails?

The common quail, or European quail, is a small ground-nesting game bird in the pheasant family Phasianidae.

It is mainly migratory, breeding in the western Palearctic and wintering in Africa. With its characteristic call of three repeated chirps, this species of quail is more often heard than seen.

How To Keep Quails In Zambia

The most important precaution with raising quail is to ensure the temperature stays between 32 and 34°C to avoid stunted growth.

Demand for quail is growing fast because of its health benefits in Zambia.

What is the best thing to keep quail in?

Well-ventilated housing, access to clean water, and a high-protein game feed are pretty much all that is needed for them to thrive.

Most people raising quail for eggs or meat prefer to grow them out in welded wire cages, resembling rabbit hutches.

How often do quails lay eggs?

The popular Coturnix quail can lay one egg daily between two and eight months. They’re most fertile and productive at that time, with the potential to produce 300 eggs a year.

However, after two years and beyond, their fertility will start to decline as they age, but they can still produce 200 or more eggs annually.

How long will a quail live?

Common quail (Coturnix coturnix), Europe’s most widespread quail species, can live for around 2 to 3 years. In captivity, common quails live for an average of 5 years.

Individual birds have been recorded to have lived for a maximum of 11 years, although such examples of longevity are rare.