Knowing about how to tame quail is very important if you want to raise quail as pets. Quails are small birds, and they can be excellent as pets.
But taming a quail is not too easy. And it takes a lot of patience for taming a quail mainly due to the skittish nature of quail.
You need to know many important information before taming your quail. Here we are describing more about how to tame quail.
How to Tame Quail
Taming quails is actually a very long process. Quails are very skittish and they hate being picked up. They are generally not the type of pets to tame easily.
They are actually very hard to tame if they are fully grown. So it’s wise to start taming them when they are young. Taming young quails is easy.
You can hand-raise the chicks and get them to become tame by just interacting with them.
Tasks to Avoid
You should not rush the process of taming, make any sudden movements, shout, get angry at your quail, chase your quail, grab your quail, approach your quail from above or force your quail to eat food out of your hands.
Doing all these tasks will make the quail more scared of you. So please avoid doing all the things above.
Probably You Will Not be Able to Tame All the Quails in Your Flock
Actually it’s quite hard to tame all the quails in your flock. Some quails can not be tamed no matter how much you try, because it’s in their nature.
And it’s actually pretty hard to tame a fully-grown quail. Coturnix and Bobwhite quails are known to be great as pets and they are pretty easily tamed. But the Button quails are extremely hard to tame.
Take Good Care
Taking good care is the key to raise quail. Feed your quails with high quality feed and always provide them with fresh water.
It will be good if you can house them in a cage with plenty of space, keep their cage clean and get rid of disturbances. The more happy your quails the better chances of getting them tamed.
Also, if you interact with them daily from caring for them they will get used to your presence which is the first step to getting them tamed. Learn more about caring for quails.
Give Your New Quail Some Time to Settle In
Give some time to your quail to settle in if they are new. Interacting with the new quail straight away can get them stressed.
For adjusting with you and the new surroundings, the birds need at least a full week.
And before you can start interacting with your quail you must first get the quail use to your presence. So give them some time and they will be okay!
Visit Your Birds Often
Try to visit your birds often, sit next to the cage every day and make sure the birds can see you. Because it’s very important to get used to your presence and know that you are not a threat.
It’s very important before starting to tame your quails. You can sit next to the birds every day, and do this for at least 20 minutes. You don’t have to do anything, just grab a chair and do some sort of time-passer.
Just ensure you are not shouting or moving about. Your birds are scared if they are running along the sides of the cage. In such case move to a certain distance away from the cage, but stay in sight of the quail.
Move a little closer to your birds every day until you are right next to the cage. Gradually your birds will know that you are not a threat for them.
Talk to the Bird
Talking or vocalizing with the quail can help you taming them. You can talk to them just like you would with a friend or you can also whistle or sing to the birds.
Do not shout or raise your voice and always try to speak to them softly. Doing these steps will get the birds used to your voice.
Start performing actions around the cage, once your quails get less frightened of you. Your birds should stop running up and down their cage at this point, and feel calmer when around you.
Perform actions that you would generally do in your daily routine if your birds are housed inside of your home (such as playing games, sweeping the floor, studying at a desk etc.).
Perform actions such as watering raking leaves, tending the garden, sweeping the pathway watering the plants etc. if your birds are kept outside.
But it is wise to avoid noisy tasks such as mowing the lawn, vacuuming or dancing to loud music.
Interacting With Quails
Interacting with quails is very important for taming your quail.
Get the Birds Used to Your Hand
You can slowly and carefully place your hand inside the cage. But ensure that they can’t escape. Lay your hand inside the cage perfectly and it’s wise to not chase the bird with your hand.
Do this for sometime every day and the birds will soon get used to your hand. And gradually they might even come near to your hand.
Offer Food
Offer foods to your quails with your hand. Before doing so, remove the feed from the cage and offer a treat that your birds enjoy out of your hand.
A good treat to feed your bird is mealworms or you can also change it up by feeding the bird a different treat every day.
But remember, never force the birds to eat the treat or don’t chase the bird around with your hand.
Just lay your hand still and see if the quail will eat the treat. Gradually your birds will get less scared and take the treat out of your hand.
Try Petting
Try rubbing a bird underneath it’s head, if the bird is very calm towards you. The bird should not run away if it is tame.
Avoid Approaching From Above
You should avoid approaching your quail from above. Quails hate being picked up or patted on the back, because prey birds generally attack quail from above.
Make a Routine
Make a routine for taming your quails and do everything according to the routine. And try to interact with your birds for at least once a day.
These are the process of taming a quail. Hope you have learned a lot about how to tame quail. God bless you!
It’s really tough for me to tame my quails. I have only 10. They fear seeing me even after 1 week. I think they will take some more time to bond with me and my family members.
Don’t worry! Keep feeding and watering them. Gradually they will be your friends. Good luck!