Why Quail Are the Perfect Addition to Any Homestead

Good morning, everybody! Whether you're sipping your first cup of coffee or tending to your animals, I hope your day is off to a great start. Today, I want to talk about something near and dear to my heart: quail, and why I believe they are the perfect animal to start your homesteading journey.

We’ve all heard the saying that chickens are the “gateway drug” for homesteaders. You've probably seen the funny memes—“My wife asked for chickens... now we have three goats.” It’s funny because it’s kind of true! But today, I want to make the case for starting with quail instead of chickens. Let me tell you why.

Meet the Quail

The coolest part about quail is they go from adorable little chicks to fully mature in just 8 weeks.. That’s incredibly fast when you compare it to chickens. If you had a brand new chicken chick today, you might not see your first egg for 6 months!

If you're trying to build a self-sufficient lifestyle—growing your own food, raising animals, and feeding your family—quail just make more sense. Don’t get me wrong, I love chickens. I raise them, I eat the eggs, and I enjoy the meat. But for beginners, quail offer a better return on investment.

Why Quail Make Sense

Here are a few reasons why quail are a smart first choice:

1. Fast Maturity

Quail are fully grown and start laying eggs around 6–8 weeks of age. Chickens, on the other hand, take 6–9 months to start producing.

2. Inexpensive to Start

You can often buy quail chicks for just $1–3 each. They're affordable and don’t require as much space or infrastructure to raise.

3. Quick Hatch Times

Quail hatch around day 17, sometimes even earlier. Chickens hatch on day 21 or later. That means you can raise more quail per year simply due to faster turnover.

4. More Efficient Egg Incubation

My incubator fits 36 chicken eggs—but it holds 120 quail eggs! Another one I own fits 90 chicken eggs or 300 quail eggs. That’s a huge difference in production potential.

5. Compact and Productive

You’ll need more quail per meal compared to a chicken, but they’re easy to raise in bulk. If you’re barbecuing—trust me—you’re going to want three or four per adult because they’re delicious!

Cost-Effective Homesteading

Getting into homesteading isn’t cheap. You need tools, fencing, feed, brooders, coops, and more. Quail make it easier. You can start with something as simple as a plastic tote, a heat source, some wood chips, a feeder, and a waterer. That’s it. Super simple and affordable.

Even off-grid homesteaders can raise quail successfully. If you’ve got a broody Silkie hen, she can hatch your quail eggs for you—no incubator needed! Just be sure to bring the chicks inside once they hatch, as the size difference can be dangerous for the little ones.

From Hobby to Full-Time Farming

I wish I had known about quail when I started. My wife and I have been homesteading for over 10 years now. It’s been a slow road—we’ve both worked traditional jobs the whole time. But little by little, we’re moving toward full-time farming. And a huge part of that progress has come from quail.

If you’re thinking about starting your homestead or just want to dip your toes into self-sufficiency, I truly believe quail are the way to go.

Stay Connected

If you’ve got questions about quail, homesteading, or just want to talk about life or the Bible, I’d love to connect with you. Here’s where you can find me:

• Facebook: Judd’s Quail

• YouTube: Cowgirl Jesus and Rodeo

• Website: www.juddsquail.com

Thanks for spending some time with me today. Grab another cup of coffee, give your animals some love, and remember: great things start small—just like a quail egg.

God bless you, and we’ll see you next time.

Why I Started Raising Quail—and What You Need to Know Before You Do Too

Hey everybody, this is Graham with Judd’s Quail. Today, I want to share a little bit about why I started raising quail and some crucial tips if you're thinking about starting too.

For those of you who are new to my blog, welcome! I started this journey not just out of passion, but out of necessity. My wife is currently battling brain cancer. It all began with breast cancer, which later metastasized to her brain. After surgery to remove one spot, two more grew back. She’s a strong woman, but she’s very sick—and she needs me home.

So, I turned to raising quail as a way to support my family while being present for my wife and my three daughters—14-year-old twins and an 11-year-old. This isn’t just a hobby. It’s a calling, a business, and a way to be there for my family when they need me most.

If you'd like to support us, you can head over to our shop tab at judsquail.com/shop to order quail eggs. Every order helps us more than you know.

What I Wish I Knew Before Starting With Quail

When I started out, I thought I had it all figured out. I had raised chickens before, so I figured raising quail couldn’t be all that different. But I quickly learned that, while similar in some ways, raising quail comes with its own set of unique challenges.

Honestly? I now prefer quail to chickens. They take up less space, they lay more eggs, they’re easier to process, and they hatch faster (17 days vs. 21 days for chickens). But if you’re thinking of starting your own quail journey, let me give you the advice I wish I had at the beginning:

1. Infrastructure Is Everything

The number one thing to get right from the start is your infrastructure. Quail multiply fast, and it's very easy to end up with way more birds than you have space for. And when that happens, things can go downhill fast.

• Incubation: If you’re hatching eggs, you’ll need a good incubator. I can hatch up to 480 eggs at a time—but that means I need a solid plan for what to do with 400+ chicks.

• Brooding: A plastic tote with pine shavings, a heat lamp, feeder, and waterer can work for about 20 chicks. And even then, only for the first two weeks. After that, space gets tight fast. Overcrowding leads to “piling,” where chicks smother each other trying to stay warm. This can result in a whole bunch of dead chicks, which has now cost you time and money.

  Space guideline:

  • Up to 2 weeks: 6 chicks per square foot

  • 3 + weeks: 3.5 chicks per square foot

  • For jumbos: Stick to 3 per square foot

• Grow-out Pens: After the brooder stage, you’ll need pens for them to grow until processing or egg-laying. I currently have two grow-out pens that hold 50 birds each. That’s only enough for 100 birds, and if I hatch 400, you can see the problem.

2. Plan Ahead—or Prepare to Be Overwhelmed

Everything from heat lamps to pens to water systems needs to be ready before hatch day. Trust me—once the chicks are here, it’s too late to be scrambling.

I’ve lost birds to unexpected cold snaps and heat waves, simply because I didn’t have enough safe, climate-appropriate space ready. I learned from these mistakes and want to help you avoid these pitfalls in the first place.

Remember what they used to tell us in business school:

“Poor planning leads to poor results. Prior planning leads to positive results.”

Final Thoughts

I love raising quail, and I truly believe it’s a great way to support a family, build a homestead, or even start a small business. But it takes planning. It takes heart. And it takes a willingness to learn.

If you’ve got questions or need help getting started, feel free to reach out. You can email or text me—my contact info is available at judsquail.com/about. I'm happy to help however I can.

Thanks for reading. God bless you and your family, and I hope you’ll come along on this journey with me.

—Graham
JudsQuail.com
“Raising birds. Loving Jesus. Supporting my family.”

Blog Post Title Two

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.

Blog Post Title Three

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.

Blog Post Title Four

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.