I have entered into a new phase of self-sufficiency. Besides raising chickens, which will begin laying eggs very soon, I've started raising quail.
We began with three different breeds but have decided on one breed that is larger and they are more docile. Quails generally are still wild birds and behave that way every time you approach the cages. The most skittish ones we have are Golden Manchurian and White Texas A&M. The more calm ones are Jumbo Brown Coturnix.
All the females will lay eggs -- up to 300 a year. We've already enjoyed several dozen eggs from them. We had too many males so we killed some and had them for a couple of lunches. I figure that keeping the quails alive till we're ready to eat them is better than having to process them all at once.
These birds will give us a source of meat and eggs that are fresh all the time, and we know they haven't been fed hormones or antibiotics.
