blinders for quail?

[carob]

hi everyone I have 12 quail, 3 male and 9 female. My first time raising quail and they are about a year old. They just started laying a few weeks ago and thats when I started having problems with some of them fighting with others even though i have followed the 2 square foot rule. My problem seems to be one dominate male and one dominate female which i have separated from the rest so right now everyone's alot happier. But I was wondering if anyone ever used blinders? Or if this is something they do during peak breeding season so that i may eventually put them all back together ?
thanks for any advice

 

[Fat Daddy]

You didnt say what kind or quail. But going by the chicks in your avatar, Ill guess bobs.... I have always had trouble running them in a colony situation. Im sure it requires a very large pen to work. You will find them much easier as pairs during breeding season. Just a bob fact. Almost all Bob problems can be fixed with smaller numbers of bobs, or larger living quarters.... As for your question about blinders. I have never used them or known anyone to use them on quail. But I have and do use anti aggression bits. More on chukar than bobs, but on occasion, I get a mean one that is too good to just cull. Here is what they look like and how they work.... It will take the feather pulling and blood letting out of them till the mood passes. Eventually the beak will touch again at the tip and the bit will then just be a nice nose ring or can be removed for a while. Good luck. Bill

 

[carob]

yes they are bobwhite quail, I'm sorry i forgot to add that.
Thank you for the advice I will look into the bits and pray it helps.

 

[TwoCrows]

First, the minimum square footage for Bobs is 4 feet per bird. During breeding season you have to keep them paired up at all times. No trios, no pairs together. One male, one female in their own space. Separate all pair into separate breeding cages for the season. Using bits is fine, however you will have happier and healthier birds if you just separate pairs during the breeding season spring through fall. From fall through to spring, you can mix them all together again. They need to covey up during those winter months.