Poads?

Awwwww! Looks just like the Burnt Sugar Poads. 😀

Button quail are very neat and can be kept as pets even if you have adequate means to care for them. They make the coolest noises, like the mix of a frog and a dove!

Me too, that would be awesome!

Here’s a page to get you started! They are ‘ground’ birds and as such their care is quite a bit different than parrots or softbills. Their diet is also a bit different… not a good bird if keeping live bugs grosses you out! They are also prone to breaking their necks from flying up and hitting the top of an enclosure, so great care must be taken in their housing. Not a normal birdcage type of bird.

Note: the author of this site suggests cedar or pine bedding, but it is my personal and very STRONG recommendation to stay clear of those woods! Especially cedar bedding/chips. Cedar is a known carcinogen in small animals, and birds have very sensitive respiratory tracts. The oils in Cedar and pine are not good for them at all in the long term. I used to ask my managers to stop ordering them when I worked in pet shops. Aspen shavings or things like Carefresh are safe for birds.
http://www.cyberquail.com/

These guys are cute but it’s like keeping a rabbit that can fly. 🙂 Personal recommendation: I would avoid buying them at pet shops, but instead seek a breeder that will let you raise a tame quail. These guys actually end up in rescues and adoption centers fairly often too, so check there as well for one that needs a home! 🙂

Yes, appreciate the information, Jen. I actually do have an old aquarium that could house a pair, but will hold off for now. Looks like something I would love to do when I retire. I was surprised with the life spans being short but it’s like finches and I’m used to birds with longer lifespans; so they would be perfect for someone older–most likely you’ll out live them. Bugs don’t bother me, I used to have Red-Eyed Tree Frogs and fed them live crickets. Think I found the bird for my old age! 😀

They sure are cute! Although, if you want to raise a pet bird, you might also consider a nice bantam Cochin hen, or a Bearded Belgian hen. (Yeah, here she goes with the chickens again! 😆 ) But seriously, our little banties are really neat birds, very personable and tolerant of handling. Bantams are much smaller than regular chickens. The Cochins look like little feathery Chinese grapefruit, and the Beardies have little beards (usually) and feathered feet. Both types weigh less than two pounds; the Beardies are pigeon-sized and the Cochins are the same, although with those poofball feathers they look a little bigger. If there’s a feed store in your area, they may do orders of chicks in the spring and summer, and sometimes you can piggyback a special request onto an order.

If you go with a hen, then you don’t have to put up with crowing and they’re a lot less likely to be nippy. (Plus, you get eggs!) We have four Beardie hens and four bantam Cochin hens, from two different sources, and they’re all sweet. We also ended up with a bantam Old English Games hen who is even tinier–the size of a very small pigeon–and very friendly, but since I only have one I don’t know if she’s a fair example of the whole breed as far as temperament, or an oddity. She was probably raised as a 4-H show bird, because she’ll put up with anything.

Yup, I love my chickies! 😉 They’re not as cute as Poads, but they’re definitely pets.