Female quail not getting along

[orloffer]

Hello quail keepers!
I have two female quail living in a Critter Nation cage together, and they have not been getting along. They never seemed to take to each other, and now one seems to be chasing the other around. They are siblings and grew up together, and I know they are female because I usually get two eggs per day. Is this an issue of dominance, or do they just not like each other? The aggressor will follow and try to peck the other, while the victim tries desperately to escape by pacing along the walls and jumping into the air.
Thank you!

 

[Kale the Quail]

separate them before any of them get hurt.

 

[Nabiki]

It's possible that they just don't get along. How much space do they have? Chasing and pecking can be alleviated by more space and places to hide.

 

[orloffer]

Their cage is this one: link. I should think they have enough room, as they use both floors of the cage, but there isn't really enough space for big caves or hides. I will have to figure something out. I also can't separate them easily, as with my current set-up, I would have no place to put them and they would both be alone.

 

[Nabiki]

Their cage is this one: link. I should think they have enough room, as they use both floors of the cage, but there isn't really enough space for big caves or hides. I will have to figure something out. I also can't separate them easily, as with my current set-up, I would have no place to put them and they would both be alone.

First, I would separate them for a couple of days. When you put them back together, I would put a couple of boxes under the second floor if you can. That gives them each their own space to get away from each other.

 

[orloffer]

Thank you for the advice! I will look for boxes and see what I can do. They are extremely skittish, especially around humans. Also, they spend a lot of time hitting their beaks against the side of the cage as they pace the wall, trying to escape.

 

[orloffer]

I added a piece of cardboard that acts as a barrier so that they can be separated from each other if they choose to. It certainly seems to help, but the problem itself has not gotten much better. As soon as one quail catches sight of the other, one of the two crouches down and begins making this aggressive crooning sound, and then they start chasing each other around. It happens every time they see each other, and I know it can't be pleasant for them. I wish I could separate them, but I just don't have any more enclosures, feeders, or waterers.

 

[hew]

Doesn't seems like it would be too hard to extend the flooring on the second level so you have two separate levels. A piece of ply or hardware would work.

 

[Lilokieescorter]

Thank you for the advice! I will look for boxes and see what I can do. They are extremely skittish, especially around humans. Also, they spend a lot of time hitting their beaks against the side of the cage as they pace the wall, trying to escape.

I had the same issue & we made a.small lean to, so my silkies can hide if needed

 

[orloffer]

Doesn't seems like it would be too hard to extend the flooring on the second level so you have two separate levels. A piece of ply or hardware would work.

Thank you for the suggestion, hew!
If I made 2 separate stories, however, I would need more feeders and waterers, which I do not have. Also, the existing feeder is hanging from the ceiling of the enclosure.
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Additional fact about the enclosure:
The flooring on the second-story ledge was taken out and replaced with 1/2 inch coated hardware cloth. The 2 quail get mad at each other when one is on the first story, and the other is above it.