They aren't fussy and their diet is simple and easy to organize. Due to their size, though, it is inadvisable to feed quail big pellets but, by crushing them up, they too can become worthwhile food. Quails will be happy with parrot mix, seeding grasses, grain, seeds and occasional soft foods. By making sure they get enough protein you can ensure happy, healthy chicks.
Quails, like chickens, have a habit of scratching through their food. This is completely natural shouldn't arouse any concern. One easy way of solving this is to just raise the feeder and water dispenser slightly.
This way you can minimize food waste while keeping your quails none-the-wiser. Other important things to note is that you might want to up the protein intake in winter by adding some chick crumb or other related product. This is due to the fact that they might need extra nutrients to offset the cold.
In captivity quails are quite an easy animal to care for. Their food is easy to get and they don't require excessive grooming. They are focused and productive birds however raising them does require some knowledge of what they eat and their behavioural patterns. Knowing this, you should find raising quails to be quite a simple and productive venture. So what specifics about their feeding patterns do you need to know?
Content Quail Feeding Tips
Although 80% of their diet comes from grains and seeds, quails do need access to other foods to supplement the nutrients which they don't get from this part of their diet. So which foods provide this? Well, a popular choice in quail feeding is live insects.
These can range from commercially grown cockroaches to mealworms. These insects provide them a much needed extra boost of protein. At younger ages quails will generally need more protein and therefore more foods like insects. As they age, however, it becomes a less prominent, but still present part of their diet. If you are looking to provide your quails with some variation, consider live insects, they'll be happier for it.
Did you know that Quails will also happily eat scraps? They can eat fruits and vegetables as after grains and seeds the next major part of their diet comes from vegetation. Any vegetable and fruit scraps certainly won't go to waste when being used to feed quails but it doesn't stop there.
If you don't want to opt for homemade feed, commercial feed is also becoming quite prominent in certain markets. If you do have access to quail feed then it has been specifically designed for your quails and is more than ok to feed to them. Some quail owners, however, will feed their quails poultry feed.
While this is ok and poses no imminent danger to your quails, there is a problem that arises from this practice. Poultry feed is designed for much bigger birds and therefore your quails may ignore the bigger particles of food and only eat the smaller ones. This shouldn't cause too much concern, but if you're worried about wasting food, you can simply crush up the bigger particles before giving it to them to feed.
Advice!
Some foods are toxic to quails (see below). Make sure you've done your research before feeding the quails anything, although they aren't fussy, their health should be your first priority.
Quails Foods Chart!
| Foodstuff | Percentage of Diet | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Grains and other seeds. | 80-90%. | These foods are going to make up the majority of a quail's diet. |
| Insects. | Up to 10%. | Quail's love live insects. This provides an essential source of protein within their diet. |
| Non-Meat Based Food Scraps. | Up to 10%. | You can feed a quail almost anything from off your plate. They are known to enjoy fruits, vegetables and any grain based food. |
| Commercial Feed | 80-90% | While some now serve quail specific trail feed, some quail owners may attempt to feed their quail Poultry feed. This is ok but your quail may leave the bigger particles of food in favor of the smaller ones. |
Quail Feeding Mistakes
What about Quail feeding mistakes? Can you overfeed Quail? Are there any foods that you just can't feed Quail? Although you can't overfeed quail due to the fact that they stop eating when full, there are some foods that are toxic to quails. Avocados, uncooked potatoes, stems and tomato leaves, parsley, caffeine, rhubarb, chocolate, grape seeds, anything salty and citrus are all toxic to a quail.
Although they don't generally eat these foods unless they're truly hungry, every quail owner should know and avoid feeding their quails these foods in order to avoid untoward complications. Like other animals water and water availability is also of extreme importance to quails.
Water should be available for your quails at all times. You should make sure that they can reach the source and also that they know the water is there (this can be achieved by gently dipping their beaks into the source). One thing to be cautious of, however, is that the bowl is not bigger than the quail. If the bowl is bigger then it is possible that the quail could fall in and drown. Another thing that is of importance when feeding quails is the change in diet from chick to adult.
A quail chick requires far more protein than that of an adult. This can be achieved by feeding them dried mealworms. You need to continue this feeding pattern until they are 6-8 weeks old as it enables them to grow into a fully fledged adult. Once the chick reaches this point, however, you can move them onto a normal adult diet.
Depending on the purpose of breeding you may want to add extra protein or raise or lower certain nutritional aspects. By knowing what's toxic, what makes up a quail's diet and why, you should be able to raise prime quails that are happy, healthy and content.
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