Quail Feeding Follies: How Much Do These Tiny Eaters Devour?

Whether you’re raising quail for their meaty goodness or their egg-cellent eggs, you need to solve the mystery of their insatiable appetites. Get ready for a belly-full of laughter as we dive into how much food these little feathered friends gobble up and how it affects your wallet.

Food Consumption in Quail: Picture this: fully grown coturnix quail munching on 1.5 ounces (40 grams) of feed per day, while the jumbo ones, well, they need to super-size it to 2 ounces (55 grams) daily. Hold on tight, because a flock of 20 adult birds can devour a whopping 1.8 pounds (800 grams) of feed each day. And the little baby quail? Their appetite grows faster than a kid in a candy store. It takes around 4.4 pounds (2 kilograms) of food to fatten up a quail for a butcher-worthy feast.

Cost Breakdown: Now, let’s break it down and have a good laugh at the expenses involved in keeping these hungry quail satisfied.

The First Month: From Baby to Fully Feathered: Prepare for the quail growth spurt of the century! These mini-feathered miracles barely weigh a few grams when they hatch, but boy, do they pack on the pounds faster than a sumo wrestler at an all-you-can-eat buffet. When I bought my first batch of quail eggs for incubation, I thought, “Oh, they’re so tiny, they won’t eat much.” Oh boy, was I wrong! My initial 55-pound (25-kilogram) bag of starter feed, costing me $25, barely lasted over a month with my gang of 37 birds. Talk about ravenous appetites!

Let’s do the math, shall we? Each quail consumed nearly 1.5 pounds (680 grams) of feed during the first month, which translates to an average of 0.8 ounces (23 grams) per day. And remember, that’s just an average! Those day-old quail were content with just a few grams of food per day. It’s like they were on a quail diet plan!

But wait, there’s more! When they were just tiny fluffballs, I ground up one pound (450 grams) of starter feed. Surprisingly, that lasted them almost four days. That means each adorable baby quail ate approximately 3 grams of feed per day. That’s less than a single cheerio! But by day five, their appetite exploded, and they were gobbling up over 2.6 pounds (1.2 kilograms) of food daily. That’s like a quail buffet extravaganza!

In total, the average daily food consumption for quail in the first month was 0.8 ounces. And guess what? The average weight of a quail by the end of the first month was a whopping 6.7 ounces (190 grams). So, to feed each quail during the first month, you’re looking at an approximate cost of $0.67. It’s like a budget-friendly gourmet meal for these little beaked connoisseurs!

Second Month: Reaching Maturity: Hold on to your feathers because the quail feeding frenzy continues! Regular coturnix quail still chow down on 1.5 ounces (42 grams) of feed per day, while the jumbo ones require a little extra at 2 ounces (56 grams). That means they’ll consume 45 ounces (1,275 grams) and 60 ounces (1,700 grams) of feed per month, respectively. Now that’s a lot of bird buffet action!

The good news is, during this phase, you can transition them to more affordable grower feed or layer feed. I mean, who doesn’t love a good bargain? A 55-pound (25-kilogram) bag of layer feed cost me a mere $22. Now we’re talking about penny-pinching quail connoisseurs!

In terms of cost, feeding regular quail in the second month will set you back around $1.12 per bird. But if you’ve got those jumbo quail with a grand appetite, be ready to shell out approximately $1.50 per bird. These jumbo quail are like gourmet diners with a high-class taste for expensive meals!

Four-Week-Old Quail Feeding Frenzy: Ah, the excitement of watching your quail grow into adulthood! By the time they reach ten weeks, they’re all grown up and ready for the world. But let’s focus on their feeding habits during the second month.

While the daily changes may not be as amusing as in the first month, these quail are still putting on some serious weight. You can practically feel their meaty breasts growing meatier by the day! In fact, some people only bother harvesting the breast meat because there’s so little meat elsewhere. Talk about being selective eaters!

Let’s sum it all up in a hilariously organized table to give you a glimpse of the quail feeding frenzy:

Pro-Tip for Aspiring Quail Feeders: Here’s a quail-tastic piece of advice for all the new breeders out there. Use the above tables to estimate your quail’s food needs for a few weeks. And remember, always stock up on enough food for at least a week or two. You don’t want to find yourself in a sticky situation with a flock of hungry quail and an empty food bin. If worst comes to worst, and you run out of quail feed, don’t worry! These little creatures can munch on grains, pasta, rice, and even some veggies. A hungry quail is not as picky as a well-fed one, after all!

So there you have it, folks—quail feeding madness in all its hilarious glory. Now you’re equipped with the knowledge to embark on your quail-feeding adventure. Just remember to keep those quail bellies full and your wallet in check.
Happy quail-feeding and may the beak be with you!