How to Stop Quail From Pecking Each Other? (Solved)

The quail usually get along very well together, they playfully scratch each other in the sand bath and the group co-exists peacefully. But overnight this abruptly changes, the quails suddenly peck at each other, one quail will pick out another and soon they are pecking at each other bloodily.

This seemingly unusual behavior is very common and is experienced by quail breeders, although it sounds like a terrible thing, it usually happens at some point in groups of quail.

Interactions among adult quail usually include competition for resources and aggressive behavior. When there is more than one male in a group, they establish dominance hierarchies.

Here are some tips on what to do in an aggravated scenario and how to prevent this behavior in quail.

What to do if quails peck each other?

You should act immediately in case you notice signs of physical violence between quails for two main reasons, the first is that the pecking fights between quails are taken to the extreme of causing bleeding wounds between them and even total annihilation.

The second thing is, in case you notice quail fighting and do not act immediately, other quail will take the aggression as a habit and the problem of quail aggression will be further aggravated.

Here are some tips on what to do:

1-Identifying Problematic Quail

The first step is to observe the quail and pay close attention if the quail are frightened or cowering in a corner, notice if there is only one quail left in the center of the barn and if the others are fearful of it, that is an indication that it is the quail that is pecking at the others.

Although the first look usually falls on the male quail, it often turns out that it is a very dominant female quail that is attacking the other quail.

2-Separate pecking quails

Many quail breeders make the mistake of separating quail that are injured and chased from the group. However, what is recommended against this is to separate the quail that peck from the other quail.

The quail in conflict should be kept in a separate quail house for at least 15 days. This time is important for the other quail for several reasons:

During this time, on the one hand, minor injuries can heal. On the other hand, the quail can recover physically. It is not uncommon for bitten quail to push others away from the drinker and feeder.

Frightened quail regain the confidence to move more courageously and normally in the barn again.

Within a fortnight the group grows together and there is order and control without the problem quail. If it joins the group later, it will find it harder to cope with one of the quail in the group.

3-Bringing quail together after fifteen days – a first attempt

After the fortnight period, the quail is placed back in the group with the others. Now it is necessary to stay with the quail for a couple of hours to observe the quail’s immediate behavior.

Normally, the quail will stop being aggressive towards the other quail. But if after a short time the quail resumes aggression and pecks at the others, then it should be removed from the group again.

4-Bringing quail together, a second attempt (if necessary)

It has been shown that a second attempt at socialization is often unsuccessful. The quail cannot return to the group.

One possibility that can still be attempted is to integrate the quail into an entirely different group of quail. However, you will usually not find another keeper who is willing to take in an aggressive quail into someone else’s group.

So what do you do with the quail? Unfortunately, there is only one sad answer to this…

What is the reason why quail peck at each other?

Random pecking of quail may be collectively referred to as pecking disorder. The pecking disorder will cause quail to peck at each other and themselves.

The main reason may be that there is not enough food each day, or that the food is of very poor quality. A quail that has not eaten enough is hungry and has no food to eat, will develop bad habits of pecking everywhere.

It may also be because of problems in the environment such as temperature and humidity, permeability, light intensity, stocking density, hygiene and other environments in their environment do not meet the proper requirements of quail breeding life.

In addition, inadequate dietary ingredients, lack of trace elements and vitamins and other substances, and the proportion of methionine and leucine in the diet do not meet the requirements, which will also lead to violent pecking reactions of quails.

What can be done to prevent quail from pecking each other?

It is not known exactly what causes a group of quail that was previously peaceful to start fighting and one quail to peck at the other.

There are some factors, however, that encourage this behavior and can help prevent it:

Keep quail busy: Bored quail are prone to develop violent habits. Whether it is plucking feathers or pecking. Hence, trying to keep them busy is the best prevention.

High-quality feed for quail: Unbalanced feed for quail is suspected to cause nutrient deficiency and this leads to fights between quail.

Too much light: A quail house that is too bright can encourage fighting. This statement is corroborated by the fact that such problems are more frequent in summer.