Growing my Own: The Quail Chronicles

Ok, so before the P.E.T.A weirdos get all up in my business about animal cruelty, let me make it perfectly clear that I don't need to eat meat to survive. My butt is fat enough without the added calories. My doggins, however, thrive on a diet of wholesome animal protein. Lately, they have really blossomed since they have been eating a carefully designed raw diet and I really want to find safe sources of meats, eggs, veg and dairy that are grown conservatively and conscientiously in small scale to continue feeding them this, without worrying if the animals that go to feed my own pets were mistreated or not. So, I have decided to grow my own game birds for eggs and to slaughter and feed to my dogs.

Looking to replicate some of the good things I had back on the Farm when I was growing up in rural Oregon, I began my project. I'm speaking of my memories of fresh produce, fresh dairy, fresh eggs, fresh poultry-all grown without confinement and eating naturally occurring foods in their own environment, and also harvested/slaughtered in as a humane fashion as possible. That said, now that I am in the city and on a half acre lot, it's a little unrealistic to expect that I should be able to replicate the bounty and sustainability of an entire working farm just to feed my dogs.

Enter the Urban Farmer: a seldom encountered, poorly understood character that wears a suit and tie/or pumps and matching handbag during the day, and donning overalls with clodhoppers early every morning and again into the evening (as long as the sun is good). No amount of scrubbing will hide the dirt from under their carefully manicured nails, or conceal the t-shirt shaped tans on their necks and upper arms earned from evenings and early mornings tending their pea patches, roof top green belts, backyard chickens, or upside down tomatoes hanging beside a rabbit hutch. If it there is a square foot of dirt, have no fear the Urban Farmer will find a use for it.

You could say there is a little Urban Farmer in us all. I reconnected with mine last Monday when I made the peaceful drive out to Enumclaw, Washington to select my first juvenile Coturnix, the Japanese Quail, or Coturnix coturnix japonica. They are also known as Common quail in Europe. They are not native to the Americas, but are becoming popular here as meat and egg birds. I selected this bird specifically due to it's small size, quiet nature, ease of keeping, and for the fact that it is a game bird that my dogs would naturally be able to catch and eat back in their homeland. It is an efficient feed to meat converter also, more so than chickens. The quail egg is also said to be more nutritious overall. They mature quickly, and they do make some lovely song like noises.