Brooder to Johnny House

[Chameleon]

Have land and new pup, and want to create hunting opportunities.  I'm totally new to this, but I think my best bet will be to use Johnny Houses.  My understanding is that they work best with younger birds.

Can I take quail from a brooder straight to a Johnny House, and will these quail learn to be good flyers if released daily starting at 6 weeks or so?

If I got one of those GQF style metal brooders, could I grow 100 bobwhites to 4 weeks, and then put 25 each in a 4x4 Johnny House, and expect them to mature into birds for training and hunting?

[Little Bear Game Farm]

Not sure on Texas but I know there are certain states where J houses are not legal.  May want to check into that first. 

Others may think this is bogus, but a friend of my dads back here in WI is actually having pretty good luck with the Surrogator and has been getting bobwhites to make it through the winter!  Get the proper habitat established first and then try to get the birds to survive or you may as well plant and hunt right behind.  Otherwise something else will

[Chameleon]

Thanks.  Johnny House's are definitely legal in Texas.  I'll have to get a preserve permit that is like $80. 

I've looked into the surrogator, but don't really understand what advantage it would give me over a regular brooder?  Since I have a shed with electricity that is within 1/4 mile of places I'd put surrogator, it seems like I'd be better off with regular electric brooders inside the big metal shed?  Would the surrogator be a lot less maintenance than the regular battery style brooders?

What I'm most curious about is the idea of using a Johnny House as sort of a half-way house.  In other words, could I put 4-week olds in a large 8x8 Johnny House, and use that to grow them out?

I was hoping that I could go from the brooder to the Johnny House, and then acclimate them to living in the wild by letting them out often over the next couple of months.

[RedOakGamebirds]

Cant answer any of your questions on the surrogator but I can on the box brooder.  I use the stackable brooders and can easily house several hundred quail to 4-6 weeks.  You just have to be careful and not throw them from the warm brooder out the door into the weather.  You have to constantly decrease the temperature until its off completely before you take them out.  Back in the early days of raising for us (the 1980's) we learned the hard way by brooding birds and putting them outside after 4-5 weeks.  Although it was June and a comfortable 60's at night it killed many of them by them simply piling onto each other.  Good luck to you and hopefully you will find the answer you're looking for....

Larry