I am Alexandra Douglas: poultry enthusiast, influencer and mentor, author and writer, and homesteader. I am known as the Quail Lady, as my first love and passion have been and always will be quail.
I am a poultry scientist, author, owner and manager of Stellar Game Birds, Poultry, Waterfowl LLC. I have a a Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Sciences with a Pre-Vet, and Poultry Option from Oregon State University and a Veterinarian Technician certification. I havw been working with the Coturnix japonica for quite some time now and am focused on a bird that high quality but self sustainable as well. I am educated in genetics and nutrition which makes me an asset to the farm. My interests involve genetics, nutrition, production, and anything with scientific evidence or something that I can prove in the long run. I am a scientist and teacher at heart. I writes for various magazines and is a blogger for many as well. In addition to working a 9 to 5 type job, I am a freelancer and work as a social media manager, copy writer and editor, and content creator for several businesses. You can my LinkedIn profile for more information on what I am capable of.
I have always been a bird lady. At 9 years of age, I was given a little parrotlet and fell in love with birds since. I bred and hand raised finches, parrots and loved animals in general. Growing up with animals taught me responsibility and motivated me to learn more. When I was in high school I volunteered at vet clinics and animal shelters. As a volunteer in the animal shelter, I went from cleaning cages to assisting in surgeries and I enjoyed that greatly. I wanted to be a Veterinarian specializing in avian and exotics.
With the dream of being a veterinarian, I knew that I would have to leave the city Chicago and start my adventure elsewhere. I decided to be one of those kids who would travel and attend school at the opposite side of the planet. In 2005, I graduated high school and moved to Oregon, where I would be living for the next 4 years attending Oregon State University. I chose the major Animal Sciences with the Pre-Veterinary option. Soon after, I added the poultry option as I enjoyed interacting with chickens, and later quail.
I was very fascinated with poultry by my Sophomore Year of college. I found out that one of the professors in the 1920s was the only poultry man in the National Agricultural Hall of Fame. He bred a hen, Lady McDuff, who was the first hen that was documented to lay more than 300 eggs a year as well as Oregona, the first hen that laid more than 1,000 eggs in her entire laying career. I visited a couple poultry producing facilities and learned more on how the production plants work. I saw how important genetics and selective breeding played in all these businesses which then in turn led to my fascination with quail.
One of my favorite classes I attended changed my outlook and lessened my interest in being a veterinarian. I absolutely loved my Avian Embryology class. I enjoyed learning about the different stages of embryology of poultry. In this class, I was handed a little chick, a quail, named Stella. This little quail became the foundation to my farm later on.
After graduating in 2009, I moved back home to Illinois and then moved with my family to Florida on 6 acres. The same year, my farm Stellar Game Birds, Poultry, Waterfowl LLC was created.
A few years later I moved again to Ruskin FL with my partner and crime Eric along with the farm name and established our 5 Acre homestead (where 5 Acres and Destiny originated as our blog name).
While starting out on the re-vamped farm, I have been on podcasts, interviewed, have written for a few magazines, and have published a few books. I love writing, photography, learning new things, and I love animals.
It’s been over 10 years since the homestead was created and we are still learning the ropes on homesteading and self sufficiency. Other than quail, we now raise emus, chickens, ducks, geese, goats, dogs, pigs, and other critters. In college you learn a lot, however someone once told me there is book smarts and then street smarts. I am always learning as well well as helping others succeed as well. Follow us as we share our journey through homesteading and self sufficiency and help others achieve the same dream.
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