Broody Quail Agression?

[AniaOnion]

I have a quail hen I am pretty sure is broody. She even rolled another hen's underneath herself. What makes this particularly funny is I don't actually have a rooster at all!

The thing is is ever since she went into this state, she's been chasing around her sister and pecking her pretty violently. When I kept her with just the other two hens she was fine, but if I tried to keep her from pecking her sister she would start in on the other two.

I've separated her for now, and I'm working on both making her a good brooding box and either getting her some fertile eggs or getting a rooster. But I am worried about the aggression. Is it induced by the broodiness? If I get her a broody box is it safe to keep her with the other hens or do I need to keep her separated?

 

[sourland]

The aggression is a result of the hormonal changes accompanying her broodiness. Now that you have moved her, she will most likely break her broodiness. When you reintroduce her there will be fighting as they restructure their pecking order.

 

[AniaOnion]

Break her broodiness? So you mean it's unlikely she will hatch any eggs?

 

[DK newbie]

Yes. With chickens, you can usually move them to another nest while they are broody and they'll keep going, but I've only heard of one instance where someone successfully moved a coturnix hen during incubation - and I think that might actually have been along with the nest she was already laying on, so only the surroundings changed, not the nest itself.

If she really is/was broody though, it's more likely that she'll become broody again, so you might get a chance later. But ordering fertile eggs now would probably be a waste. You can try to give her a box with straw in it and some of the infertile eggs - if she doesn't start incubating the eggs, she wouldn't incubate fertile ones either.
I'm not entirely sure what you mean when you say 'a broody box', but in general any chicks that hatch are more likely to survive if there is only their mother in the enclosure.
If she goes broody in an enclosure with other birds in it, you should therefore try to remove the others while disturbing the broody one as little as possible - if you think she would be very upset by the others being moved, you could also leave them there, but keep watch like a hawk as hatch day draws near, so you can move them as soon as the chicks hatch.

 

[007Sean]

I agree with @DK newbie , another thing to remember is just because she went broody, doesn't necessarily mean she will set on the eggs till term.

I think the aggression she's showing will likely continue. It's really a 'toss up' sometimes whether they will get along. You can try separating them and reintroduce them but then there will be a new pecking order for them to work out.
Getting a male for her may or may not work also...she may not accept him or he may not accept her. If you do get a male, put both of them in an enclosure together that neither one has been in, more likely to accept eachother and their 'new enclosure'.

 

[AniaOnion]

It's weird, because the two hens lived together for a year and a half before they came to me. With me they lived so far for 3 months. This is the first time her aggression has ramped like this.

She wasn't fully done laying her nest yet. She was showing signs of going broody but she hadn't officially started her incubation yet. I have separated her for now, and hope it breaks her broodiness, but if her aggressive behavior doesn't change. I can't risk the safety of my other hens.

 

[007Sean]

I've had pheasant hens that where hatched and raised together and got along fine, for 6 years before one decided she wanted to kill the other 5 hens. Was just outta the blue, had no prior disposition. Put her in an adjoining pen where she still to this day fights and fusses with the other hens through the wire. Some days, it goes on all day long. As I said, "sometimes it's a toss up!"