[Daisys Mum]

I have been thinking that I would quite like to keep some quail, couldn't be bothered with the plucking ect to eat them so it would just be for eggs, which would be the best kind to keep? There seem to be so many different ones and I would want good layers. Thought I would get eggs and hatch them in my incubator.

[Eve]

I just picked up 21 golden / Italian quail chicks, they're supposed to be very good layers. They're nearly 4 weeks old now so a little bit longer to go before I can confirm that 
 

[hexhammeasure]

Coturnix or japanese quail are the ones people usually go for for eggs and meat, a slightly bigger bird which lays slightly bigger eggs

[graham-j]

Hi,Japanese,Italian and coturnix are all the same really.You want the jumbo version of these.They start laying at 6 to 8 weeks old.

Graham.

[Eve]

The golden / Italian (different names, same breed) lay the biggest egg compared to their body size (same size egg as other coturnix but slightly smaller bird). They're kept for eggs as they're prolific layers. Jumbo's are slightly larger but not by much (their eggs are not larger, though, but the birds will eat a bit more). It takes a while to get your head around the breeds as several names are used for one and the same bird.
 
Does it matter to you what colour eggs they'll lay? Some lay plain eggs in a rather prety shade of blue or in a plain brown. I'm supposed to get mainly cream coloured ones with a light blue pattern. When I saw the eggs they looked like little balls of pretty soap to me. 

[Daisys Mum]

Thanks all, if anyone has fertile eggs to sell I would be interested otherwise it could be ebay again.

[Mel Rice]

I started with quail eggs in the incubator....8/12 made it to adulthood. A couple of birds are now on their 2nd winter and the rest first. I did a cull for christmas so are back down to 7 (one laying already and its VERY MUCH winter here still)
I didnt find plucking as hard as I thought it would be in fact easier than a chook or those horrid hairy bits on a goose. We ate 1 per person as starter on christmas day...and yummy they were too.
I raised all my youngsters in the incubator as I have heared they dont make good mothers.
They are remarkably robust. They cope with cold well (Very cold German winters) I keep them in 3 empty rabbit hutches over winter as the wet is the killer....they go out into a rabbit hutch with pen on the grass in the summer.
Fun to watch and I like the call....my daughter wanted it as her mobile phone ringtone!.
ENJOY

[Beeducked]

Don't knock keeping them for meat. I was surprised at how much meat you get from one (big stater to two for a main) and actually plucking them is no more fuss than peeling those little eggs! Takes me about 10 mins to pluck one as a beginner.

[Clarebelle]

I'm just about to get my first quail eggs but having just read another thread about coccidosis (sp?) I wanted to double check something. I have got a bag of medicated chick crumb as it was included in a starter pack that I bought and I assumed this would be ok to feed to the baby quail as I thought it was only waterfowl that were at risk from it. I planned to feed layers pellets at POL. Is this ok or can quail chicks not be feed medicated chick crumbs?

[Mrs Snoodles]

Quail should not be fed medicated chick crumb.  they need non med chick crumb or duck/game bird crumb.

[Pasture Farm]

From all of my research the chicks will do very well on ground chick crumb... once they have feathered i start to change their diet over to Marriages Quail food. The reason as far as i am aware you cannot feed chick crumb all of the time is that it contains a coxidiostat that is poisonous to humans therefor you cannot eat the eggs once they start laying. hope im right else all my quail will die tommorw

[Mrs Snoodles]

Our farm vet said no to medicated feed for quail, that it was harmful to them and in larger doses would see them off.  I found duck crumb to be cheaper too  btw