DIY Sparrowhawk: requirements, drawings and dimensions of the house

All poultry must be kept in proper conditions as they affect growth, development and productivity. This also applies to quails. Most often, cages are made for them, which can be installed in any suitable place. However, the best option is a do-it-yourself barn or sparrowhawk. The room should be comfortable, so the production must be taken seriously.

Sparrowhawk requirement

The first thing you need to pay attention to is that quails do not live on the floor. Many novice farmers unknowingly build a regular poultry house for them, like for chickens, but this is unacceptable. Quails should be placed in special cages with tiers.

Other requirements include:

sustainable materials;
possibility of full care of the product;
free access to drinkers and feeders;
presence of nests and trays for collecting eggs;
additional heating in winter;
lamps to extend daylight hours.

The owner should take care that there are no drafts and direct sunlight in the quail coop.

Drawings and dimensions

Based on the total area of the barn and the number of heads, they make from 3 to 12 tiers. The cage should be made of wood on three sides and a metal mesh. Thus, the issue of drafts is solved. It is important to calculate in advance the dimensions of the future home for quails.

One bird should account for at least 1.5 dm^{2 As a rule, for the purpose of growing and breeding, a family of 1 male and 5-6 females is needed. When birds are bred for eggs, it is possible to populate hens with 20-25 individuals in each cage. For fattening males for meat, the scheme is similar, but the owner must not forget about the insulator, where you can put especially violent specimens.}

Before you make a cage, you need to create a design drawing. The following items should be noted on it:

drinker;
feeder;
egg tray;
litter tray;
door.

The slope of the floor in the cage is about 7-13 °C. The tray for collecting eggs should protrude 8 cm from the cage, and so that they do not fall out, the structure should be equipped with small sides.

Choosing a seat

The choice of a place for the construction of a bird house must be approached responsibly. The site should be located away from residential buildings so that unpleasant odors do not reach them. It is not necessary to build an object in a lowland, because there is a low temperature and high humidity. Birds do not tolerate direct sunlight, so it is better to hide the building in the shade.

Like other types of poultry, quails need daily walks. They should have a special place for walking. It is desirable that there be vegetation near this place - shrubs, trees, grass, because birds love natural conditions.

How to make a DIY Sparrowhawk

The construction of the barn is carried out in stages. Initially, a barn is built, and then they begin to arrange and assemble the cages. After choosing a suitable place, it is necessary to complete the drawings, determine the size of the structure.

The selected area must be carefully freed from vegetation, including tree roots, otherwise they will begin to give growth, which will destroy the structure. The top layer of the earth is removed, and the surface is leveled. Sand is poured on top with the addition of a small amount of gravel.

Next, blocks for the foundation are installed, the bars are treated with antiseptics. A floor covering is laid on the bottom of the base, then a wall frame is mounted, fixing it at the base. The walls can be sheathed with chipboard, leaving room for window and door openings. The next stage is the installation of the roof and the cladding of the facade.

Cells

After building a poultry house, bird cages should be made. They can be arranged in several tiers, while the first one is preferably placed 40 cm from the floor. The height of the latter is determined by ease of maintenance, but you should not place it under the very ceiling.

Cage height - no more than 30 cm, because quails differ from other poultry in that they love to jump. In too spacious cages, this often leads to injury. The tray at the bottom of the cage will provide quick and easy disposal of litter, leftover feed and other debris.

Ventilation and humidity

A ventilation system is a must for a poultry house. Even the simplest design will be able to maintain optimal humidity. It is advisable to ventilate the building every hour. This requires automatic ventilation.

Air can be circulated through windows. To do this, one window frame must open, and the second must have small holes. This will allow fresh air to circulate freely throughout the room. Another option is to install a mechanical fan. It is mounted in the window and periodically turned on.

A more complex device is supply and exhaust ventilation. This system is not cheap, but it is effective. You can do it yourself by making channels for air exchange using pipes.

Lighting

Even if there are windows in the house and there is enough daylight, additional lighting will still be needed in the winter season. You need to take care of the network at the stage of finishing work. Fluorescent lamps are suspended from the ceiling, and an infrared lamp is required for subdued lighting. It should not be placed close to the cells.

Temperature

To maintain a comfortable temperature during the cold season, heating devices are used, however, in order to reduce electricity costs, it is necessary to insulate the walls at the construction stage. Styrofoam, mineral wool, pressed wood shavings are suitable as a heat-insulating material.

Organization of walking

During the summer, it is recommended to walk birds daily in a designated area. An aviary is suitable for these purposes. Exercise keeps birds he althy and improves performance. The site for the aviary is chosen with grass and shrubs. It is surrounded by suitable material. The top is covered so that foreign birds do not steal food. Drinkers are placed on the territory.

Care and hygiene

Care of the room and the cage implies not only mechanical cleaning of litter, food residues, other rubbish, but also regular disinfection with special means. This will help prevent infectious diseases. It is important to regularly wash the drinkers and feeders, as well as the cage itself. Disinfection is carried out once a week. At the same time, cages with birds are taken to another place to avoid poisoning quails.