Female button quails 3 vs 1

[Cmtxo]

Hi all,

New to the forum so hope this is the right place to post!

Me and my partner got 4 female button quail about 3 or 4 months ago when they were 8 weeks old. It's my first time looking after birds of any kind but my partner had chickens and a different kind of quail growing up.

They have been getting on fine until about two weeks ago when I first noticed that they seemed to be fighting. I couldn't tell who was the aggressor but there was a lot of chasing and a bit of pecking. Over the last week or so the fighting seemed to be getting more frequent and we noticed that no matter who was fighting, there was always one of the quail, Speckly, involved.

Things came to a head this morning when my partner tried to clean out the hutch and all 3 of the quail turned on Speckly and were chasing and pecking her really aggressively. She's missing some feathers on her bum and has quite a bad wound there too. We have separated them and kept Speckly in the dark to recover and the remaining 3 seem to be getting along fine but I'm at a loss at what to do next. Any idea what's causing it? Are they likely to be able to be put together ever again?

If it helps, two of the quail are in light colour, one is black, and the one being picked on is a brown/speckled colour. They all came from the same breeder at the same time, and at least 2 or 3 of them are regularly laying, if not all of them.

Thanks for any advice, I'm really worried about Speckly and would hate it if anything awful happened to her if we make a bad next decision!

 

[Green Bean Quail]

Hey! My scissor beak is doing the same to my two new silvers. In this case, I would try to “reintroduce” them to each other in an area none of them are familiar with-like a dog crate. They may just be establishing their pecking order now that they have their territory established, it’s perfectly natural for quail. I am a tad worried that she is against three other birds. You may want to keep her separate for a bit more and try again later.

 

[Cmtxo]

Hey! My scissor beak is doing the same to my two new silvers. In this case, I would try to “reintroduce” them to each other in an area none of them are familiar with-like a dog crate. They may just be establishing their pecking order now that they have their territory established, it’s perfectly natural for quail. I am a tad worried that she is against three other birds. You may want to keep her separate for a bit more and try again later.

Thank you, that sounds like a possible reason. We will see how she receivers over the next day or two and consider our options. They have had the same layout in their hutch for a couple of months ago now... Do you think it might be enough to do a dramatic rejig of the space (e.g. Different things to hide in / climb etc)?

 

[Green Bean Quail]

Thank you, that sounds like a possible reason. We will see how she receivers over the next day or two and consider our options. They have had the same layout in their hutch for a couple of months ago now... Do you think it might be enough to do a dramatic rejig of the space (e.g. Different things to hide in / climb etc)?

Honestly, go for it! That’s what I just came inside from going to mine! I added a bunch of dividers, hay piles, and pine branches work wonders for blocking vision. I added my scissorbeak back and she doesn’t seem to notice the new ones now. Fingers crossed. Distractions and lots of places to hide/block view from other birds!

 

[Green Bean Quail]

Honestly, go for it! That’s what I just came inside from going to mine! I added a bunch of dividers, hay piles, and pine branches work wonders for blocking vision. I added my scissorbeak back and she doesn’t seem to notice the new ones now. Fingers crossed. Distractions and lots of places to hide/block view from other birds!

 

[Cmtxo]

View attachment 2359597

Unfortunately the 3 of them are still trying to go for her through the wire we put up when she pops her head out of the closed area I'm nervous about possibly reintroducing her but I guess we'll just have to see how they go in a few days. Looks good! Good luck, I hope it works!

 

[Cmtxo]

Question for anyone who may be able to answer... Is it possible that one is the ring leader and the others are just following suit? While they all are aggressive towards poor Speckley, one certain seems to go for the attack more than the others and even seems to seek her out. Is it possible the others will calm down if I swap the bully and the bullied around or are the other two still likely to attack?