Integrating Aggressive Quail, Looking At The Big Picture: Part Four
homesteading·@lifemovedbysteem·
0.000 HBDIntegrating Aggressive Quail, Looking At The Big Picture: Part Four
[](https://postimg.org/image/6fn705ied/) This is Penguin resting on my lap. I have been having my coffee in the quail aviary every morning since we built it. Observing the quail, how they react to others in the flock. Penguin and Henrietta love to hangout with me, never leaving my side while I am there.  This is Henrietta and Penguin watching a plane. The shift in my approach came about, after doing this for a few weeks. Last week I wrote about intergrading Miss Piggy, the latest in a series of post about aggressive quail. Let me just start with what I mean about aggressive. Birds can be mean, if you have raised them you know what I mean. The have a pecking order that is fought out, feathers lost, blood spilled until a hierarchy is formed. You spend anytime with a heard, pack or flock animal, with keen observation you will be able to pick out the boss and the underling. You could write down in order from the top to the bottom. Everyone but the very top and the bottom have someone above and under them. These social status's are guarded with the upmost seriousness. This is survival instinct. I realized that I had been trying to train these birds instead of quietly observing them and grouping them up according to their own individual personalities. I noticed that the ones getting picked on the worst were the "social misfits", so I took all of the misfits and placed them together. They were so happy. Everything had balance. Until the babies arrived.  And I am so glad they did because that was the trigger that completed the solution. I picked them up to diversify my genetics, I am trying to get really good flocks together before hatching. I think that if you breed animals being conscious of the genetic diversity in the beginning is key. That was another reason for pulling the misfits out of the genetic line. I have a ton of different sources, and these babies where going to really help, even if it was in a very unexpected way. At first it was fine, until the top birds in the flock noticed what I thought at first all of the babies. They were relentless, I didn't know what to do. I rescued one in a particularly bad attack, then looked. The bird had a club foot! The birds where picking on her because she showed some form of genetic abnormality. The same as with the misfits. So I placed her in with them. Valuable lesson, even if you trust the breeder, examine your birds. Breeders are busy. Here I was trying to better my flock genetics and unknowingly bought one that was not breeding quality. Everything calmed. https://steemitimages.com/DQmY3MmdnXm8U2daR3YyfDwoVqVwcrc3Mm5ZAaE47hk4XRn/20170912_160501.jpg Here she is, Sissy Hankshaw.  The misfits in their home, safe from being picked on.  So I scooped up my aggressive male (Thor) and aggressive female (Miss Piggy) And five other very dominate females, Flocka, Freckle, Mystique, Tweedle, and Phoenix. I put them in their own enclosure. The original house now had two separate sections, The Social Misfits and The Bullies. The birds where trying to tell me something. The dominate ones hated abnormalities in others. Anything different from a perfect example of what a quail should look like they picked on. They also hated timid birds. The sweet ones who liked me and never showed aggression got it too. I am writing this article a few days after the switch, and the aggressive ones are my best layers now that I grouped them I can have better idea of who is laying.  The bullies have their own upstairs loft and bottom section. I noticed the most aggressive out of them like to stay in the upstairs nest box. Having their own private space has calmed them. Living together has made them different birds.  That has left the three new brown babies, the brown baby male Jabberwacky, the two blonds Elisa and Alice, and my sweet little pets Henrietta and Penguin in the rest of the aviary.    It has been a few days, the quail have been completely peaceful. Each little group gets along, I have seen them all sleeping together, eating together and existing in harmony. There are people that I wouldn't want to be in a small space with for a long period of time. Different personalities that just don't click. I guess it is no surprise that the birds are the same. I think with all situations in life, quite observation can revel the solution to most imbalances and problems. We must not expect quick fixes or perceive invested time as a loss. Build things with intention and honor, even if its just raising quail.  Thank you for reading my blog, if you liked this post, lets be friends and follow me. Big Love. Ren.
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