Quail chicks in Ghana: small birds, small space, steady eggs

Quail suit people who have more patience than land

Quail are the smallest commercial birds we handle, and they are popular with people who do not have much land. A flat roof, a spare room, a small backyard shed or a corner of a compound can hold a surprising number of birds in cages. If you live in town and cannot keep chickens because of space or noise, quail are worth considering.

They also suit people who want quick feedback. A quail hen starts laying about 6 to 8 weeks after hatching, much earlier than a layer chicken that begins at around five months. That means you can see results within two months, learn from your mistakes quickly and start selling eggs while other poultry projects are still growing.

They are less suitable for people who want a lot of meat from each bird, or those who cannot tolerate a daily routine. Quail are small, so the meat per bird is small, and they need regular attention to feed, water and cleaning. They also give quiet but constant work: because the birds are small and the numbers are large, small mistakes spread fast.

At our hatchery in Kasoa we are straightforward about this. Quail can be very rewarding, but they are not a shortcut. If you are comparing options, read the guide on choosing between broilers, layers and Sasso, then come back to decide whether quail fits your situation.

Price on request: why we do not publish a quail chick price

You will notice that, unlike our other birds, quail chicks do not have a fixed price shown on the price list. This is deliberate. Quail chicks are produced in smaller numbers than chicks of chickens, availability changes from hatch to hatch, and the box size and number per order are agreed with each customer. A printed price would often be out of date.

So the process is simple. Send a WhatsApp message to +233 24 915 1503 with the number of birds you want, your town and your target date. We reply with a price in writing, the earliest hatch that can supply you, and the delivery cost to your town station. Only then do you pay, by mobile money, bank transfer or cash. There is no online payment, and nothing is taken before you have seen the price.

When you enquire, it helps us to know four things:

• How many birds you want to start with.
• Whether you already have cages and a brooder.
• Your town and nearest transport station.
• Whether you plan to sell eggs, meat or both.

Orders of 1,000 or more are quoted individually. For smaller numbers we will explain the box size available when you ask. If you are not sure how many to buy, start small: a few dozen birds will teach you what a thousand would.

Space, cages and where to put them

The main attraction of quail is how little room they need. A hen needs only a small floor area, so cages can be stacked in tiers. A short row of three or four tiers can hold more birds than a chicken house of the same footprint.

Use cages with a wire floor that is small-meshed, so that small chicks do not fall through, and a slight slope so eggs roll forward to a collection tray. For young chicks, line the floor with paper or cloth for the first days. Use a lid or net: quail can jump suddenly, and they injure their heads if the roof is too low.

• Floor area: allow a modest space per adult bird, roughly the size of a small hand-span square for each, but check with us or an experienced keeper for the density that suits your cage design. Overcrowding is the main cause of pecking and stress.
• Height: keep cage roofs fairly low, so jumping birds do not hurt themselves.
• Light: a steady daily light period encourages egg laying, so use a bulb in the evening if your area is dark.
• Location: choose a quiet, shaded, ventilated spot away from rats, cats and snakes.
• Cleaning: use trays under the cages and remove droppings often; quail droppings smell strongly when wet.

Quail are sensitive to sudden noise and movement, so place cages where traffic is low. A stressed flock stops laying. Keep a simple routine and visit at the same times each day.

Brooding quail chicks: tiny birds, big heat needs

A quail chick is very small and loses heat quickly. In the first two weeks it needs a brooder warmer than the usual chick brooder, in a draught-free box or cage with a heat source and a cooler area to retreat to. You will see how they cope by watching them: crowded under the lamp means cold, and avoiding it means too hot.

Because chicks are so small, many things that are harmless to chickens become dangerous. A deep drinker can drown them, so use a very shallow dish with pebbles or marbles, or a drinker designed for quail. Feed must be fine, so crumble starter into small pieces or use a game bird starter. Smooth floors cause leg splaying, so cover them with rough paper or cloth.

1. Prepare the brooder a day ahead and check the heat for several hours.
2. On arrival, count the chicks, dip beaks in water and place them under the heat.
3. Feed fine starter on paper for the first days, with shallow water always available.
4. Reduce heat gradually over about three weeks as feathers develop.
5. Move to grower cages after about three weeks, keeping them warm at night.

Our general guide to preparing the brooder before day-old chicks arrive covers the basics. For quail, apply them with extra attention to size and heat. We provide free advice before and after delivery; message us on WhatsApp if your chicks seem weak.

Feeding quail for growth and then for eggs

Quail grow very quickly and need a high-protein diet while young. A starter with a higher protein level than standard chick feed is ideal, such as a game bird or quail starter. If only standard chick starter is available, ask your supplier for the highest-protein option and speak to a vet or livestock officer for advice.

Layers need calcium. Provide crushed oyster shell or ground snail shell separately, so hens take what they need. Without enough calcium, shells become thin and hens may stop laying.

• Keep feed dry, because quail waste mouldy feed quickly.
• Refill feeders frequently in small amounts, so food stays fresh.
• Use feeders that reduce spillage; quail scatter feed.
• Check water twice a day, particularly in hot weather.
• Never let a hen run out of feed or water; one missed day can interrupt laying for a week or more.

Feed is the biggest running cost in a quail unit, so do your sums before you scale. The principles in our guide to starting a poultry farm on a budget apply just as well to quail.

From chick to first egg: the 6 to 8 week timeline

The speed of quail is their special strength. In a good unit, hens come into lay in about six to eight weeks, though the exact week depends on feed, light and stress. Here is the pattern.

First eggs are often small or irregular, and a few hens start later than others. Do not panic. Keep feed and light steady, and the flock will settle into a regular pattern. Keep a record of birds housed, eggs per day, feed used and deaths. After a month you will know the real performance of your birds and how it compares with your hopes.

Quail lay for a long period but production eventually falls, and many farmers replace hens after a laying cycle, selling older birds for meat. Plan replacement batches so that you never run short of eggs; a new batch started every few weeks keeps income smooth.

Egg markets in the cities

Quail eggs are a specialty product. They are small, speckled, and bought for their taste, convenience and the belief that they are nutritious. Demand is concentrated in cities and larger towns, such as Accra, Kumasi, Takoradi and Tamale, where more people can afford a premium item.

The typical buyers are households, hotels, restaurants, event caterers, supermarkets and small shops, street vendors who boil and sell eggs, and people who prepare snacks. Some buyers want fresh eggs by the tray, others want boiled and peeled eggs ready to eat. Selling boiled eggs adds work but can add value.

• Start with a few steady buyers in your area rather than hunting for large contracts.
• Pack eggs carefully in trays or small cartons. Shells are thin.
• Label clearly, with the date of collection.
• Offer delivery to nearby offices and homes if you can.
• Keep it clean: wash hands, collect daily and store in a cool place.

We do not quote a market price for quail eggs because it varies a great deal by city and buyer. Ask three or four sellers in your area before you commit to a unit size. For a rough reference point only, our table eggs from chickens are GH₵ 50 per crate of 30, which shows the baseline of the egg market, though quail eggs are sold differently, in small counts.

Also consider selling spent hens and surplus males for meat, and eggs for hatching if you keep males with the hens. Fertile quail eggs have a short incubation, around 17 to 18 days.

Health, cleanliness and keeping losses low

Quail are hardy once past the early weeks, but they are tightly packed and a disease can spread quickly in cages. Cleanliness is the best medicine.

Remove droppings from trays often, keep the unit dry, and allow fresh air without cold draughts. Wash drinkers daily. If you use a floor tray under cages, change the litter regularly. Quarantine new birds for at least two weeks before adding them to the flock, and keep visitors, especially other poultry keepers, away from your cages.

Signs to watch for include birds that sit apart with puffed feathers, laboured breathing, loose droppings, falling egg numbers or sudden deaths. If you see these, isolate affected birds and call a vet quickly. We do not give disease treatment advice in a web page, because each case differs; follow your vet's schedule and advice.

Chicks from Halaal Farms are vaccinated at the hatchery, and the batch record we provide can be shown to your vet to plan any boosters. Where a vaccine program for quail differs from chickens, rely on your vet's guidance.

• Keep rats and wild birds out; both carry disease.
• Remove dead birds the moment you see them.
• Do not mix ages in one cage.
• Keep a separate set of boots and tools for the quail house.

A worked planning example for a 200-bird laying unit

Because quail chick prices are on request, we cannot give you a fixed total here, but we can show you how to build the budget so that you will be ready when we send the quotation.

Once you have the figures, compute income. Count the likely number of laying hens, multiply by the eggs you expect each month, then by your selling price per egg. Subtract feed, labour and packing to see the margin. Do this with cautious numbers: assume that some birds die and some lay less than hoped. If the plan still works with those assumptions, you can proceed with confidence.

The most common error is to scale up before understanding the routine. Many farmers begin with 50 to 100 birds, find their buyers and learn to manage feeding and cleaning, then expand in steps. Compare this with moving into a larger bird like a turkey: see turkey poults in Ghana for a very different, seasonal approach.

How to order quail chicks and get them to your town

Message us on WhatsApp at +233 24 915 1503, or use the order form. Tell us the number of birds, your town and your target date. We reply with a written price, a hatch date and the delivery cost, and only then do you pay by mobile money, bank transfer or cash.

Quail chicks are dispatched on the day they hatch, in ventilated boxes, by trusted transport to your town station. You may instead collect from our farm in Opeikuma, Kasoa, by appointment. Chicks can travel up to about 48 hours on yolk reserves, and we deliver to all 16 regions. Because quail are so small, we recommend that you be at the station when the vehicle arrives, keep the box out of sun and wind, and move the chicks into the brooder immediately. Our delivery page explains how dispatch works.

Count the chicks on arrival. If any are dead on arrival, send a photo on WhatsApp the same day and we replace them free in the next hatch.

Not sure quail is right for you? Browse all our day-old chick pages, or call us. If your goal is eggs in larger volume, the layer chicks page describes the chicken alternative, and our FAQ covers common ordering questions.

Questions farmers ask