Pips 'n Chicks Breeding Programs
As many of you know, I moved from WI to the upper peninsula of MI in the fall of 2022 and had to sell all of my birds. Thanks to an amazing community up in Houghton, I have the opportunity to raise quail again. I am incredibly blessed and grateful to be where I am today. Thank you to absolutely everyone who has helped me get to this point, from my parents and family, to my close friends at Tech and back home, and to farmers both in WI and MI (as well as my quail and poultry friends from across the US) that have made it all possible--I hope that I can keep paying it forward to everyone around me. From showing to judging at shows, I have grown to love these little birds so much.
Current Pens
Meet our current birds, goals, and awards
Pharaoh
Pharaoh is the most essential color there is for coturnix quail. Also called "wildtype", it is the original color without any other mutations or dilutions. It forms the basis of every other pattern, and can be used to clean up lines and test breed new patterns. For that reason, it is one of the main focuses of my breeding program. I am working to get a line of clean, strong, calm, and productive pharaoh. Strong legset, good weight, and nice head shapes are a priority while also maintaining a clean and neat pattern with a nice tone throughout.
Awards:
Cap (main rooster):
-Best in Show Open Poultry @ Houghton County Fair
-Class Champion Any Other Poultry @ Houghton County Fair (Open Show)
-2nd Wildtype @ Pips 'n Chicks 2023 Virtual Show (Open Quail)
Lady (Hen #1):
-First Any Other Old Female @ Houghton County Fair (Youth)
-Best Any Other Female @ Houghton County Fair (Youth)
-Used for Grand Champion Youth Showmanship @ Houghton County Fair
-Used for Quail Demonstration @ Houghton County Fair
Iris (Hen #2)
-First Any Other Young Female @ Houghton County Fair
Fawn
Fawn is, in my opinion, one of the prettiest colors of quail. It's the addition of the ASIP gene to Pharaoh, and can be split into both Italians and Manchurians. I'm working to get a line of clean and consistent Manchurians within three to four generations that I will then be breeding back to Pharaoh and hopefully get nice and symmetrical Italians. This is a long work in progress to hopefully achieve strong, healthy birds with all-black markings on every single feather, consistently.
F1 is Pharaoh (Cap's brother, Crazy) over Manchurian, Italian, and Italian-Fee birds to get a mixture of Fee, Italian, and Pharaoh.
Awards:
Yeti (Manchurian Hen):
-2nd Manchurian @ Pips 'n Chicks 2023 Virtual Show (Youth Quail)
-Honorable Mention Overall @ Pips 'n Chicks 2023 Virtual Show (Youth Quail)
-2nd Manchurian @ Pips 'n Chicks 2023 Virtual Show (Open Quail)
Cookies (Pearl Fee Hen)
-1st Any Other Young Hen @ Houghton County Fair (Open)
-Reserve Class Champion Any Other Poultry @ Houghton County Fair (Open)
Cream (Pearl Fee Hen)
-1st Any Other Young Hen @ Houghton County Fair (Youth)
Fun Pen
These are just other birds that fill pens 3-6. I have a pen for fun colors that I sell eating eggs from, extra grow out space, and butcher birds. I'll bring some of the fun colors to shows to let others see the wide range of varieties and genetics they can get into and will keep track of the results here, but these are mostly just for fun!
Awards:
Reba (Scarlett)
-1st Any Other Old Hen @ Houghton County Fair (Youth)
For Sale:
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Service:
Incubation
I will have a single Brinsea incubator that I can incubate extra eggs in (up to 24 chicken eggs or 50 quail eggs at a time). I can incubate either your eggs or ship eggs in to incubate for you.
It will cost $1.50 / egg to incubate, you only pay for what hatches. A 50% non-refundable down payment must be made in advance, and chicks must be picked up within 2 days of hatch or will be surrendered to us and will be sold.
For Sale:
Chicks
I will try to presell most chicks (sometimes I have to count them before they hatch, so you may end up with a few more free chicks in the mix!) as our set-up is focused primarily for adult birds. Down-payments are required for a guarantee, otherwise we will contact everyone on our waitlist as first-come-first-serve.
All chicks will be $3 for day-olds, unsexed. They increase $1/week until they hit maturity or can be feather-sexed.
For Sale:
Eggs
We will have plenty of extra eggs available in June/July and beyond! Most eggs will be washed and sold as eating eggs at farmer's markets and in the area, but message me and I can set some aside for hatching. Hatching eggs will be sold unwashed and turned hourly at room-temperature. Due to the variability of incubators, we cannot guarantee hatch rates.
Eggs are $3.50/dozen for eating, and $10/dozen for hatching.
For sale:
Adults
Adults will very rarely be sold outside of extra roosters. They cannot be pre-ordered as we do not have extra grow out space for them. Any mature bird will be sold sexed, and we do guarantee sex on birds with their bands still intact.
All roosters will be $5, hens will be $8. Any clean bird will automatically be $2 more. Birds are only available for local pickup in Houghton or Hancock, and we cannot take birds back due to biosecurity.
Terms and Conditions for all sales:
Due to many factors outside of our control, Pips 'n Chicks does not offer any guarantee on hatch rates, show quality, plumage, or health of the birds once it leaves our hands. We can insure a healthy bird up until we sell it, and the buyer assumes full responsibility of bird, eggs, or other products after purchase. It is also the buyer's responsibility to confirm the accuracy paperwork and any necessary records provided by Pips 'n Chicks at the time of purchase.
If you run into something unexpected, such as chick death, genetics issues, low hatch rates, or other troubles, please contact us, but know in any and all circumstances outside of missexing*, Pips 'n Chicks is not obligated in any way, shape, or form to refund, replace, or take back any items for biosecurity and legal reasons.
*In the case of an adult, mature bird sold as the opposite sex, a full refund will be issued provided that the legband ID is still intact and matches our sales records.
All sales are final and must be made with the intended owner for our records. Down payments are non-refundable, especially for cases of no-shows and late buyers.
By purchasing any egg, chick, bird, or other product (live or otherwise) from Pips 'n Chicks, the buyer is automatically agreeing to these terms.
I strive to make sure our birds, chicks, and eggs are satisfactory for all of our customers and haven't run into any issues thus far. This is for the worst-case-scenario to protect our hard work and efforts. Thank you to everyone who has purchased birds from Pips 'n Chicks in the past, and for all of your continued support!