We drove to Sauk Centre to pick up some additional quail a couple of days ago. I had a lone and lonely chick in the brooder, and one of the half-grown chicks magically turned from a hen into a rooster – haha! The scraggly one could be either or, and I don’t plan to incubate eggs from that one. To make wintering easier, and to be ready for spring, the drive seemed to be the best choice.
The seller was amazing. They bent over backwards to make sure we had what we needed to transport the birds, and they said that if any turned out to be roosters, we could exchange them. I really like how they treat all of their animals. I’m also inspired by their woodworking to build a couple of pens for the garage, as backup to the ground pens.
I bought three very young chicks to go into the brooder with my lonely one. The chicks are slightly bigger, but so very close in age and size. They all get along beautifully. Maybe soon I can convince my original one to give up that teddy bear.
They’re close enough in age and size. 
The new chicks love the mirror.
The older chicks and my original three also get along perfectly. Their age must have everything to do with that.
Funny thing, though. The beautiful, nearly all-white one crowed after we got him home. Huh. And he is so gentle and pretty that I simply cannot consider exchanging him. My original one crowed for the first time after that. This may mean building an additional pen in the spring. Or two, if another turns out to be a rooster. At least we’ll get through winter with enough quail in the covey to stay warm.
Now we’re down to keeping the right amount of heat and non-heat to each of the pens. The other two pens I worry about, when the temp dips like it did last night (28° – brr!), but they had a chance to molt. The newer ones, I’ve been bringing in at night, and trying to get them ready for winter during the days. The bigger pens have Cozy Coops in their coops to heat them when absolutely necessary, and the small one has a heat mat on a wall. With the balance of birds no longer a concern, the goal is to beat the cold. Sub-zero extremes are around the corner.
