Your quail setup checklist

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• Quail hutch or runEssential

  Plenty of floor, a low roof or soft netting ceiling, and a covered end. Use the hutch planner for the size.

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• 13 mm (½ inch) weldmeshEssential

  Chicken wire keeps quail in but lets rats, stoats and weasels through. Weldmesh doesn't.

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• Floor litter: wood shavings or chopped strawEssential

  Soft on their feet, soaks up droppings, easy to change.

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• Dust bath sandEssential

  Quail clean themselves by dust-bathing. A shallow tray of dry sand keeps mites down.

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• Quail feederEssential

  Lipped or with a grid on top: quail flick food everywhere.

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• Quail drinkerEssential

  Small, shallow and easy to clean. Nipple drinkers work well once they've learnt.

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• Game bird or quail layer pelletsEssential

  Quail need more protein than chickens. Chicken layers pellets won't do.

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• Oyster shell gritEssential

  Extra calcium for strong eggshells.

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• Quail egg boxes

  For keeping, gifting or selling a dozen.

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• Timer light for winter laying

  Laying slows when days get short. A small light on a timer keeps them going (optional).

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• Incubator (if hatching)

  Fan-assisted with automatic turning, and quail egg rails.

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• Brooder heat plate (if hatching)

  Chicks need 35–37 °C in week one. A heat plate is safer than a lamp.

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• Game bird starter crumb (if hatching)

  High-protein crumb for the first weeks.

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• Hatching eggs (if hatching)

  From a breeder who sells fertile Coturnix eggs and can tell you the line.

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