Maine-ly Quail

12/23/2024

Tough little Harlequins and I really like those Gray Bareed Bobwhites!👌

12/22/2024

This Mountain hen laid the most of all last season. The Mexican Speckled sure aren’t afraid of my phone like some others are.

12/22/2024

Helen

12/22/2024

Sniffles

12/22/2024

The Elegant Quail in their winter homes.

12/22/2024

Some of the winter watering that I go through for 4 months out of the year.

12/22/2024

A pair in a newly cleaned pen will last all winter. I’ll take the plastic off in late March/early April and then clean it for the breeding season. They get their beaks and toenails trimmed at that time too.

12/22/2024

December 22, the coldest day so far this winter. Teens today with single digits tonight, maybe some windchill on top of that. 60 waterers frozen solid to change, check feeders, fill some, and go in where it’s warm to thaw my frozen hands and toes. I hate winter. 4 months of it to go.😫

12/19/2024

Now and then I have people advise me as to what I should have. 😄 They tell me about all of the pheasants and partridges as though I’ve never heard of them before.
I’ve had quite a lot of those species in the past. Some I liked more than others. The main reason for me not having them is money. No, not money to buy them, but they don’t make any money. This is a business.
I realize the prices of some of them are high, as they should be. A lot of these species only lay a small clutch of eggs in a season and need a pretty big pen. Great for a hobby and hoping to get lucky to raise enough to pay for it.
That’s what I used to do with Temminck’s Tragopans, Impeyan Pheasants, and species like that. Those are beautiful birds and I miss them, but I only have so much time and space. That’s why I narrowed it down to pretty much all quail and a couple partridges. They don’t take huge pens, most lay a decent number of eggs in most seasons, and they’re always in demand. They’re profitable.
I’m not sure of how much of a demand there is out there for Chinese Bamboo Partridge and Black Francolins, but those are two species that I’m interested in getting into. I want to see what’s out there for bloodlines to see if it’ll be worth my while. I had a pair of the Blacks probably 20 years ago. I liked them.
Maybe something to look forward to.🤔😃

12/19/2024

This is B-1, my best producers. They’ll be 6 years old next season. Hopefully I can squeeze one more out of them.🤞🤞

12/19/2024

B-3 is already looking forward to next season.😃

12/19/2024

Hopefully there’ll be a good buncha Elegant eggs headed across the pond next summer!

12/19/2024

Elegant Quail are a bit of a challenge, but a must for quail hobbyists. Beautiful birds.

12/19/2024

Pair, B-3 is enjoying a mild 40-degree December day.😃

12/19/2024

A new metal roof on the brooder/growout shed today.

12/16/2024

People have been asking me about my pens a lot lately. Here’s a video that I took this evening. It turned out long even though I wanted to get a few more cleaned by dark. I was trying to rush through it and rambled a bit but I think it covers most things.

12/13/2024

Replaced 60 frozen waterers and cleaned 10 pens this afternoon. I had to take a quick Mexican Speckled video along the way.

12/10/2024

I had a post a few days ago with a picture of three pairs of young Elegant Quail in a pen that was a big hit. It drew a lot of attention and a lot of comments.
Apparently people don’t seem to know the rules of Facebook. Advertising any kind of live animal for sale isn’t allowed. Things have to be worded as, “up for discussion” or “looking to be re-homed”.
A ton of people in the comments- “How much?” And, “How much and where are you from?”🙄 The best I can do is give the link to my website. Almost none took the time to look at it , so I stopped replying to people after a while. These people can’t be serious quail breeders. Maine-ly Quail should explain enough that I’m from Maine, and my website gives all of the details.
Then there are the bullsh*tters. Probably about fifteen people PMd me, asking what I had available. I told them. Everyone wanted it all and then some. Some are serious. Some just like to hear themselves talk. Want but don’t offer to pay.
It’s first come, first serve from now on. I won’t hold anything for anybody unless payment in full is in my PayPal account. And people are buying up what I’ve been waiting for others to pay me for. I’ll have some angry people because of it but no more Mr. Nice Guy here. This is a business. I don’t ask people to hold hundreds or even thousands of dollars worth of birds for me for weeks when I know that they can sell them ten times over in the meantime.
I can’t ship until after the holidays and I heard there’s going to be a $15 per box surcharge on live birds after the 15th of January, so if anybody wants to avoid that, then it’s a good idea to buy it now.
I’m out of some things and low on everything else. It’s hard to get a good count out there, especially on the desert quail species because they’re flighty and don’t stand still. I’m going to try to get better look once more this afternoon and then look at my list of orders. I just picked up another one a few minutes ago for some Valleys.
I’m probably out of Snowflakes. I might have one last pair of Mahogany Barred and a couple extra males. I have a few Mexican Speckled, Tennessee Reds, and maybe a couple pairs of Gambel’s. A few Elegants and extra hens. That post I put on moved a bunch of them. I’ve got a couple Harlequin pairs left.
Let me get all these orders sent, empty out some pens, condense a few, and I’ll know what’s left after the first of January. I wish I could send this week and get it all done sooner but the Christmas rush has the Post Office jammed right up.
Anyway, we got 3” of snow a couple days ago and another 2” last night. I’m not even gonna shovel because it’s supposed to get up to 60 degrees with heavy rain. That should take care of about all of it for a while.
Well now it’s time to head out to change the frozen waterers and fill some feeders. This has been a successful season and I hope to do even better next season. I’ve got some good plans.
Once again, here’s my website. Click on the link categories. Shipping information and FAQs are there. www.maineexoticquail.com

My name is Scott O’Brien and I live in the Midcoast Maine town of Jefferson. My quail business is over twenty years and also have this new website designed to finally get with the program and catch up to modern times. I’ve been focusing on the three rarest and most expensive species over the pas...