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When there is a desire to breed quails at home, you will have to build housing for them. Aviaries are not suitable for these birds. Cages, of course, are easier to buy, but not every poultry farmer can afford the extra costs. If you approach this issue creatively, then a home quail farm can be equipped with homemade houses. Now we will look at how do-it-yourself quail cages are made from different materials.
Requirements for cells
First of all, a homemade quail cage must be strong. If a wire mesh is used, the mesh should be just enough to allow the bird's head to fit into the feeder. Through the large holes present in the structure, brisk quails instantly jump up.
During the independent production of quail cages, it is necessary to take into account the number of livestock. One bird should have about 200 cm2 free space. Often houses made by poultry farmers provide for one individual 150 cm2 free space, which is also good for a quail.
Quails in the wild live in densely overgrown areas with grass. Birds love twilight and occasionally get out into the sun. They will need to provide a similar environment at home.
Quail cage drawing
Since the decision has been made to build cells for free at home, then drawings will be needed for work. In principle, a diagram of any design represents an ordinary box. The distinguishing feature is the bottom. For adult quails, it is made at a slope of 12about towards the egg collector. When the females begin to lay, the eggs will roll down the sloping floor into a tray fixed outside the cage.
Based on the fact that an adult bird needs about 200 cm2 free space, we calculate the size of the cage for quails, taking into account the fact that the family consists of one male and four females. Usually, the width of the house is made small, from about 30 to 50 cm. The quails grow small, and a ceiling height of 25 cm will be enough for them. The length of the cage is calculated by the number of living quails.
The shown drawing of a quail cage shows a three-tiered structure. These models are best suited for home use as they save space. More or less tiers can be made if desired.
Cage sizes for quail of different ages
Now is the time to consider the cages for quail keeping of different ages. If a decision is made to seriously engage in breeding this bird, then it will be necessary to make houses of different ages, differing in their design:
- Newborn chicks up to ten days of age will need brooders. Such a house has three side walls made of chipboard, fiberboard or plywood. The front fourth wall, floor and ceiling are closed with a fine mesh 10x10 mm. Instead of a mesh, the ceiling can be covered with fiberboard or plain cardboard. A feeder with a drinker is placed inside the cage, the chicks are provided with lighting and heating.
- The next model is designed for young quails up to 45 days old. First of all, the design provides for a mesh floor with larger cells, but not more than 16x24 mm. All side walls may not be solid. Here a net for quail cages with a mesh size of 24x24 mm is preferred.
- Houses for adult quails can be fully mesh or with three plywood side walls. To reduce the cost of consumables, metal side nets are replaced with plastic counterparts. The mesh size of the side walls should be within 32x48 mm, and for the bottom, a mesh with 16x24 mm cells will be used. In the houses where the laying hens will live, the bottom is made with a slope towards the egg collection tray. The tray itself can be just a continuation of the bottom, but always with a limiter on the edge. Otherwise, the eggs will roll out and fall to the ground.
- Particular attention should be paid to the cells that will contain quails for meat. The houses are made only from a mesh with cells of 32x48 mm. Moreover, it is important to limit the space for the birds to a smaller cage and ceiling height. The less the quail moves, the faster it will gain weight.
Having dealt with the basic requirements, we proceed to making a cage for quail with our own hands from different materials according to step-by-step instructions.
House made of mesh with a wooden frame
The quail cage shown in the photo has a wooden frame. All sides, ceiling and floor are covered with metal mesh. Phased assembly of the structure consists of the following steps:
- Wooden elements with the help of self-tapping screws are connected at right angles so that the outline of the box is obtained. At the corner joints, you can screw the overhead metal corners with self-tapping screws. They will prevent the frame from loosening.
- When the frame is completely ready, it is advisable to treat the wood with an antiseptic, then open it with varnish. This procedure aims to prolong the life of the timber frame.
- Fragments are cut from the metal mesh to the size of the sides of the frame. The net is nailed to the wooden frame with small nails, bending them. With the last row of nails, they try to pull the mesh so that it does not sag.
When the frame is completely covered, trays for collecting eggs are attached under the bottom and a sheet steel pallet is installed under the floor mesh. In the final, you need to inspect the entire structure so that there are no sharp ends of the mesh and protruding nails on which the quail can get hurt.
The video shows quail cages:
Frameless metal mesh cage
The easiest and fastest way to assemble a quail house is to bend it out of a metal mesh. The design does not provide for any frame. You need to do the following:
- A rectangular box is bent from a metal mesh. This design lacks two side walls. They are cut out separately, and with the help of a wire they are attached to the resulting box. Moreover, one fragment is fixed tightly, and a door is made in the second. This will be the front of the cage.
- For the bottom, cut out a fragment from a fine-mesh mesh, and fix it at an angle of 12about towards the cage where the door is located. There will also be an egg collector. It is a continuation of the bottom, only a limiter from any wooden plank is attached to the edge. You can simply fold the edges of the mesh.
The quail house is ready. It remains to install a pallet under the floor mesh and you can populate the birds.
Plywood house
The manufacture of a plywood house is justified by the cleanliness of the room where it will be located. Feathers and dust flying from the quail will settle on the pallet, and not fall to the ground, as is the case with mesh cages.
The procedure for making a plywood house consists of the following steps:
- A frame is made of a wooden beam with a section of 50x50 mm. It is advisable to make a multi-tiered structure with legs. The frame is made using the mesh frame cage method.
- The resulting skeleton of the structure must be sheathed.Thin plywood or fiberboard is suitable here. Fragments are cut to fit the three sides and ceiling. Several rows of ventilation holes with a diameter of 30 mm are drilled in the sheets. Each piece is nailed to the frame.
- The finished structure is treated with an antiseptic, after which it is opened with varnish. The door frames are made from similar bars for each section of the cage. Fragments are cut from the metal mesh to fit the frames, and fastened with nails. The finished doors are fixed to the frame on the front of the house with the help of awnings.
The floor, the extension of which is the egg collector, is cut out of a fine mesh and nailed to the frame. A pallet is installed under the floor of each section.
House of plastic boxes
This is not to say that a quail cage made of plastic boxes is an ideal option, but as a way out of the situation for the first time it is acceptable. To assemble the structure, you will need three plastic boxes of the same size, but different heights. Place the containers on top of each other so that the high box is between the two low ones. The bottom container will be the cage tray. An opening for the door is cut out in the upper drawer with a knife. In the side shelf of the middle drawer, the holes are increased so that the quail can stick its head to the feeder.
In the video, do-it-yourself quail cages from boxes:
What are cell batteries
At home and in production, cage batteries for quails have proven themselves well, allowing you to save usable space. What is it? The answer is simple. A battery is a collection of cells stacked on top of each other. That is, a multi-tiered structure is being manufactured. Each section is equipped with its own floor, tray and egg collector. The materials and manufacturing method of cell batteries are no different from the above-considered designs.
So, we looked at how to make a do-it-yourself quail cage from different materials. Business is not difficult, but it requires certain skills. In any case, homemade houses will cost the poultry farmer cheaper than store houses.
