About 10 days.+/-
Just put him back in before the hens peck his brains out.
That's 8 days or less. Don't anthropomorphize quail.
"Being mean to a human" may be fine for a quail.
It can be hard to watch, so I don't.
Plucked feathers, and a little blood are fine.
A 1m to 4f will find a...