KNOW ABOUT QUAILS BEFORE REARING THEM

Many farmers have rushed into quail rearing due to the high prices of the birds’ meat and eggs. It is critical that farmers learn more about quails before going into the enterprise.

Peter Kamau: Kenyan farmers are an enterprising lot and quickly embrace new agribusiness ideas. This is especially evident in the way they have adopted commercial quail rearing. Many of them had given up on poultry farming after failing to make good returns due to increasing feed become the most popular alternative to chicken rearing especially among farmers in periurban and some in rural areas. The quail is a small, wild bird whose eggs are highly valued because they are a good source of vitamins A, B1, B2, B6, B12 and vitamin D, iron, magnesium, zinc, copper, phosphorus and other essential micro-nutrients, minerals and amino acids.

The price of one fertile egg for hatching has increased rapidly from Ksh10 in 2012 to over Ksh 80 this year. In some places a hen for breeding is now going for Ksh 300 in major towns. It therefore makes good business sense for farmers to go into quail farming to take advantage of the good prices. Farmers, however, have to be extremely careful before committing their money into the venture. As we have always advised, it is important to have thorough knowledge of any new farming activity before going into full production. This will protect farmers from incurring much losses due to lack of management skills. Currently, very few farmers know how to manage quails. Those with little knowledge and experience in the business are likely to be disappointed if they do not get quick profits or incur losses. Farmers need to know the following before attempting large-scale production of quails:

Breed selection: Breed selection in quail rearing is very important for the farmer. At the moment most farmers buy quails from their neighbours or any other source because the population of quail in the country is very small and tends to originate from the same sources. This is likely to cause inbreeding where, for example, a female quail is served by the male quail. Eggs from related birds are poor in terms of fertility and their chicks are usually stunted in growth, deformed and prone to diseases. Indeed, the high mortality of quails in farms is due to the problem of inbreeding. In selective breeding, related birds are reared and mated separately, which reduces inbreeding and produces quails that lay more eggs, have good fertility traits, are healthy and productive. There are two types of quail; the Japanese quail is good for egg production while the Bobwhite is good for meat.

Disease control: Most farmers assume quails do not require vaccination since they are wild birds that have been domesticated but this is not the case. Although quails are resistant to most diseases associated with chickens and other domesticated birds, they need vaccination to protect them against dangerous diseases such as coccidiosis, gumboro and Newcastle which can wipe out an entire flock.

Housing: The best way to house quails is to put them in special cages. These should have adequate space that is free from wind. One quail requires 1 square foot of space in a cage. Cages built 2 or 3 feet off the ground allow for easier cleaning and prevent foul smell due to dampness. The floor should be made of porous material or wire to allow droppings to fall through to the ground. Alternatively a pan can placed under the cage for the droppings. A dust pan filled with sand should also be placed in one corner of the cage as the birds like bathing in a dirt bath of sand or soil.  Quails kept in dirty

and wet conditions such as lying on their dropping can develop diseases such as pergillosis- a fungal disease. They are also prone to mites and lice that reduces their productivity.

Feeding: To be productive, egg laying quails require high protein feed (with at least 26 to 27 per cent protein content). Young quails of 1 to 6 weeks need feed with 18 to 20 per cent protein content. Although farmers with the right raw materials can make their own feeds, quails eat very little compared to chickens. Farmers can therefore buy the feeds from reputable companies (Fast Grow® or Turkey Starter® are recommended as they meet the protein requirement for quails).

Give 29g of feed to each quail.This should be increased towards the 6th and 7th week, but do not exceed 50g. Each egg-laying quail requires 145g to 150g of feed per day. Like chickens, quails require water at all times.

Fertility: Farmers buying quail eggs for hatching purposes should know that quail hens that have laid for 30 weeks can no longer hatch fertile egg. The hatchability of such eggs reduces by more than 50 per cent because at this age, the mother hen produces a hormone that interferes with the ability of the quail cock’s sperm to fertilize the eggs. In the same way cocks that have attained the age of 30 weeks should be replaced with young cocks as their ability to fertilize eggs is weak - this is called spiking. Many farmers are buying low fertility eggs because they cannot easily determine their quality. It is therefore important for farmers to buy eggs and breeding quails from well-known or reputable hatcheries.

Training on quail rearing is offered at Nyeri Hatcheries. Farmers can book for training by getting in touch with the company on 0735 768 580, 0722 768 580 (ask for Charles Gitata)

Content Source" The Organic Farmer Magazine (TOF)