Hi! I saw your button quail guide, and was wondering if you have any specific recommendations for caging/housing, or at least what you use?
Hi, thanks for the ask!
I'm not sure if you can tell from this video but basically I let my birds rule my entire life and my entire desk/counter space in my room has been netted off and designated for the buttons. This way they can fly as high as the ceiling if they please, and I just unhook the netting on one side when I want to interact with them. The only drawback is that they tend to kick out a lot of debris off the edge of the counter, but it's nothing a bit of regular vacuuming can't take care of.
I have seen other people use large rabbit cages/hutches - with these you just need to make sure that the top is lined with something soft to prevent injuries when the quail do decide to fly and hit their heads. It can also be a bit tricky at times to find a large enough cage that also has bars spaced narrowly enough that the little buggers won't squeeze through. They will also kick all the things out between the bars too, so prepare for lots vacuuming with cages as well.
Large glass or plastic tanks/terrariums can work well too, again making sure that the top is soft. Easy to keep clean since everything stays inside the tank, the only issue I found back when I went with this method was that it was a bit cumbersome to train the quail because I had to lean in and struggle to keep my hands in the right positions, if that makes sense. Obviously if you're not into training, this isn't a real problem. Glass tanks are also just hella heavy.
Outdoor pens/enclosures are also an option depending on where you are. Same precautions as above, and probably best to add on an extra fine wire mesh around the whole thing to prevent escapees and predator attacks. I don't have much experience with keeping small birds outside, though, so maybe someone else can comment on that.
Hope this helps!
