Content
Quail eggs have many useful properties: they are saturated with vitamins, microelements (including such vital ones as iron and potassium). However, their cost is quite high. For this reason, farmers try to breed quail for different purposes. Some people want to diversify their table with tasty and healthy products. Others breed these birds commercially. In both cases, you need to have an idea of when the quail begins to lay, and what measures need to be taken if the egg production suddenly falls.
Age when quails fly
One of the main advantages of quails is the early ripening of birds. Quails rush very early - at 35-40 days of age. The live weight of the bird is one hundred grams. Sexually mature males emit a characteristic cry, while females whistle barely audibly. Quail productivity indicators are influenced by factors such as the age and breed of the bird.
The number of eggs in the first month is no more than eight. Then the egg production of quails increases significantly (up to 25 per month from the female). The number of eggs per year per bird is about three hundred pieces.
When do quails start laying eggs? As a rule, they begin to rush in the afternoon or late evening. Japanese quails lay their eggs after being fed.
The reasons for the decline in productivity
If egg production has fallen or the bird does not rush, the reasons may be as follows:
- Incorrect lighting... Like chickens, quails will begin to lay eggs only when there is light. Many people use lamp lighting to increase egg production. But here it is important to observe the measure. Staying in the light for more than ¾ days makes the bird shy and nervous, therefore, the egg production of quails, on the contrary, will decrease.
- Incorrectly selected temperature regime... Quails are quite thermophilic birds, so they feel discomfort at temperatures below 20 degrees. The optimum temperature range is 20-25 degrees. If the air temperature exceeds 25 degrees, birds eat worse, and productivity indicators decrease.
- Drafts indoors... In this case, not only the number of eggs decreases, but the bird loses feathers.
- Increase in air humidity more than 75%... At the same time, dry air does not increase egg production.
- Unbalanced diet... If you want to make the females more productive, feed your quail a balanced diet rich in protein. It is also important to know how much to feed and when to feed the quail.
- Excessive crowding of birds in cages... If the birds are cramped in overcrowded cages, then this also affects productivity negatively.
- Stress from transportation... Transport itself is stressful for the birds. In addition, quails will need a couple of weeks to adapt. If we talk about stress, then excessively harsh sounds frighten the bird and do not have the best effect on egg production.
- Molting... Molting quails stop rushing completely.
- Change of male quail... For about a week, the quails do not rush. Nothing can be done here - you need to be patient a little.
- Diseases... A decrease in the number of eggs or changes in the shell indicates that the bird may be unhealthy or injured. Even if there are no visible signs of illness, you should consult your veterinarian.
- Natural aging of the body... How long does a laying hen stay productive? After 10 months, the quail begins to lay fewer eggs. However, the egg-laying period lasts up to 30 months.
Ways to increase egg production
There are many reasons that can cause a decrease in egg production. Therefore, it is rather difficult to immediately find the reason that the birds began to rush less. In addition, even if the birds are moving steadily, no one will refuse to have more products.
So, first of all, a balanced feed with a large amount of protein affects the increase in productivity.
- The source of protein and amino acids is fish and bone flour.
- The shells and gravel added to the feed contain minerals that make the shell stronger.
In addition, it is necessary to monitor the nutrition of the birds. They need to be fed three times a day at the rate of approximately 30 grams of feed per adult bird. It is necessary to introduce minerals and vitamins into the diet of pets. We must not forget that you need to periodically invite a veterinarian for a preventive examination.
Be sure to ensure that the optimal microclimate is maintained in the cage. Stick to the optimum (20 to 22 degrees) air temperature. The ideal room humidity is 70%. Keep an eye on the lighting using soft light bulbs. The duration of daylight hours is no more than 18 hours. Experienced poultry breeders advise to arrange "sunrise" and "sunset" for the birds, smoothly adjusting the lighting.
The slogan "Cleanliness is the guarantee of health" with quails works one hundred percent. And it's not just about regularly cleaning the cells (although this is necessary). It is advisable to periodically place troughs in the cells, into which ash and sand are poured. Bathing in this mixture, quails not only clean their plumage, but also get good prevention of skin diseases.
Do not move birds from one cage to another too often. This irritates the hens and does nothing to improve their performance. How do you reconcile this with less disturbing birds? A slightly inclined floor in a cage, made of lattice material, helps. The droppings fall on the pre-spread newspaper. It remains to periodically change the newspaper - and the cage is always clean. Drinking bowls and feeders are located on the outside of the cage. It also greatly simplifies the cleaning of the quail "housing".
The most popular egg quail breeds
All quail breeds conventionally divided into meat and egg. The former include birds such as Pharaoh, Manchu quails... The relatively low egg production is compensated by the rather large weight of the birds and the good quality of the meat. Now let's talk about egg breeds.
Japanese
This is the most common egg breed. No matter how much the breeders tried to make the "Japanese" meat ones, the attempts so far have not been crowned with success. Fortunately or unfortunately, it is unknown. The maximum weight of females is 180 grams. Males are somewhat smaller (150 grams). The quail carries more than 300 pieces a year. The average weight of one egg is 11 g.
How do quails rush? The physiological maturity of Japanese quails is about 60 days. Birds become sexually mature at the age of about 45 days. Disadvantage of the breed: for good productivity, quails need a balanced diet and careful care. "Japanese", in addition to high egg production, are very beautiful. They are even kept as decorative birds. In addition to the classic variegated color, there are white, white-breasted and even golden individuals.
Estonian
Guests from the Baltics are very popular on Russian, Central Asian and Ukrainian farms.The secret of the Estonians' success lies in their unpretentiousness, as well as in the versatility of the breed (meat-and-meat direction). The quail carries up to 280 pieces per year. Quail eggs weigh about 12 grams. The weight of the female reaches 200 g, the male - 170 g. The quail's egg-laying period begins at 40 days of age. The lack of this breed is some gluttony. These birds consume food somewhat more than others.
English whites
As the name of the breed suggests, these beauties have a snow-white color with rare dark feathers. When breeding this breed, Japanese quails were used, which gave the "British" their sign - high egg production (up to 280 pieces per year). Unlike the capricious "Japanese", the "British" are relatively unpretentious. The mass of 1 egg is 11 grams. At what age do English whites begin to fly? Oviposition begins at about 41 days of age.
Tuxedo
Very beautiful white-breasted birds with a black "tuxedo" cap on the back. This breed belongs to the category of egg. The female lays about 280 pcs. per year up to 11
Marble
This breed is a mutation of Japanese quail. The annual egg production rate is 300 pieces of 10-11 g. They differ from classic Japanese birds in grayish plumage with a marble shade.
Conclusion
The correct choice of breed and careful grooming make it possible to achieve good performance indicators.
