How to Make Wire Clipped Quail Pens

Raising quail can be a rewarding pastime for urbanites and country dwellers. Quail are small, quiet and produce meat and eggs. Raising them in a wire cage enables easy collection of their manure to compost for enriching a garden ̵2; and provides protection from predators. Quail cages should be partly walled to also provide protection from winter weather and roofed to keep the quail in and hawks out.

Things You'll Need

  • Chick wire
  • Hardware cloth
  • Metal clips
  • Clip tool
  • Wire snips
  • Plywood
  • 2-by-4 boards
  • Drill and screws
  • Staple gun and staples
  • Small clip
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Instructions

    • 1

      Cut the chick wire (chicken wire with smaller holes to keep chicks in) for the walls of your cage. Plan your cage to allow at least 1 square foot per bird. The cage should be tall enough to allow flight for the birds to be content.

    • 2

      Cut the hardware cloth for the bottom of the cage. Working around the bottom edge first, clip the chick wire to the hardware cloth every 2 to 3 inches. Keep the clips close enough to prevent gaps that would allow predators to gain access or chicks to escape.

    • 3

      Clip the corners of the chick wire together, making sure there are no sharp points exposed to the inside of the cage. This will result in an open-topped box of wire. Mount this with staples on a sheltered wall at about chest height for ease of care and prevention of ground predators.

    • 4

      Nail a 2-by-4 to the wall at the back wall of the pen and sink to at least a foot into the ground vertically at the front corners of the cage. Use these as support for the plywood roof. Nail or screw the plywood to the 2-by-4s and staple the top edge of the wire to the roof once it is secure. You may want to shingle or shake it to preserve the plywood longer.

    • 5

      Cut the wire for the door with the wire snips. Cut another piece of wire slightly larger than the opening, which should be large enough to accommodate nest boxes and other things. Clip one edge of the wire square to the hole you cut, creating a hinge. The wire should overlap slightly on the other three sides. A small clip will work for the door latch.