Adult quail are shipped via USPS Express Priority Mail service. The post office typically will not deliver birds with your regular mail, so please keep a close eye on your tracking information and be ready for a phone call from your local post office with instructions for picking up your birds. This ensures the safest and fastest shipment from our farm to you.  

Your quail will be very thirsty and hungry when they arrive. The first priority is to hydrate them. Do not give food for the first 6-12 hours because giving dried hay or dried grain-based food will dehydrate your quail even more.

1. 1. Immediately give quail free access to room temperature water. Add a chick electrolyte mixture or ½ teaspoon table salt (sea salt is best but table salt is fine) and 2 tablespoons granulated sugar to one quart of room-temperature water to give them a boost. DO NOT GIVE COLD WATER for the first 24-48 hours!
   2. Quail older than 4 weeks old do not need supplemental heat, but they should be protected from cold temperatures (less than ~40 °F) until they have recovered from the stress of shipping (3-5 days after arrival).
   3. After the quail have been allowed to hydrate for 6-12 hours, food can be introduced.
   4. Start quail on a game bird/turkey starter crumble with 28%-30% protein and ~1% calcium.
   5. If you can’t immediately find a game bird/turkey starter crumble, quail can be fed a 24% protein chicken starter crumble with crushed dried mealworms. Add ¼ cup crushed mealworms per pound of chicken starter crumble.

1. Your quail should be housed in a large pen with tall ceilings (4 ft or taller) or cages 8-10 inches tall. Cages with ceilings between these two ranges (such as rabbit hutches) can be very dangerous for quail because quail are able to jump/fly with enough momentum to cause serious head injuries if they hit the top of the cage.
2. Quail need a high-protein game bird feed. Quail should be fed a game bird/turkey starter feed with 28-30% protein and ~1% calcium until they are 7-8 weeks old.
3. At 7-8 weeks, quail should be transitioned to a game bird or turkey layer/breeder/all-purpose feed with 20-22% protein and 2-3% calcium. “Adult” quail we ship are ~6 weeks old, so they can be transitioned to lower protein feed after you’ve had them for 1-2 weeks. This will give them a nice boost while they recover from the potential stress of shipping.
4. Offer grit if your quail are exposed to hay or grass.

Lastly, enjoy your quail. Feel free to give them a container full of sand to dust bathe in, as well as mealworms or other treats in moderation.

* If excessive damage has occurred to birds or box during shipment, take pictures of the box and packaging, and contact us regarding a post office claim and bird replacement or a refund.