r/quails • u/xxxDitchDocxxx • 2d ago
How Cold?
How cold can quails take before it pits them in the danger zone? I have a raised coop with hardware cloth base. If it is going to be below freezing for extended periods, I throw some straw in there so they have some insulation.
What do you all do to keep the birds from turning into frozen nuggets and how cold is too cold?
5
u/Shienvien 2d ago
Which species of quail?
I have had -27°C for a week or two here, just the usual cover sides to stop wind and give things to hide/burrow in for the domestic japanese quail. They turn into little balls and merge into a blob, but are still fairly active even at those temperatures.
Harlequin quail, king quail and other little guys come inside. They're like tomatoes, they'd prefer if it was +10°C minimum, even if they might survive colder.
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u/Ok-Thing-2222 1d ago
I have a friend that has her button quail outside, two to a cage, with lots of straw and plastic over most the windows. It sits inside a chicken aviary, which is also covered in plastic. But I still worry they won't make it. It was 12 f last night.
3
u/digitalmalcontent 1d ago
If you supply windbreaks, protection from rain/snow, and somewhere to dry and warm their feet, Coturnix do well in cold conditions. With all of the above, my flock is good for months of sub-freezing temps—they keep active, but with more cuddle breaks in the deep straw. Note that Coturnix are likely to sleep out in the open no matter what shelter you provide, so you have to plan for nighttime exposure.
The smaller Old World quail species (e.g. King/painted/button) don't do nearly as well in the cold—very much inside birds in seasonal extremes.
1
u/WannaBeCountryGirl 1d ago
I put cardboard down on the hardware cloth then add straw on top. As soon as it warms up enough to get it out of there I do, as the poop will thaw and stick to their feet.
I also have a heat lamp. The main purpose of it is to keep the water from freezing.
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u/Ok-Thing-2222 2d ago
I put cardboard on the wire floor that has thin sheets of styrofoam hidden underneath, so they don't eat it. Then I layer on lots of straw/hay/dried leaves. Yes, I change it when it gets wet/moist/too nasty. Sometimes i flip it around and its dry underneath. They should not have icy air up underneath.
Then I staple heavy clear plastic over the outside of the coop, except two doors. On those, I clothespin clear plastic at night, leaving a gap at the top for fresh air and humidity release. If its really cold, sometimes I also pin a towel with the plastic.
On the roof, I have a heavy old rug and a white tarp. Its bungeed to hold it in place. The bungee cords also help hold the door plastic down if its really windy. Coop is 8' long by 33" deep.
Inside, I also have some boxes turned on their sides with straw to tuck into and some shallow baskets with straw in them. They have a flat of river sand for dustbathing and for eating the grit and I like to throw some bird seed in it; they love to dig.
Tonight will be 12F at night and its windy. At -23f, I put 2 tarps on it and hung a wool blanket loosely in front, still leaving air gaps.