#if it is a healthy bird that isn't a total dickhead and it lays eggs

[sassyhazelowl]

I'm in a lot of quail groups on facebook and there's been a huge push towards "breeding for temperament" aka culling any quail that doesn't behave like a potato. Your set up is bad and the birds are nervous? Cull. Its breeding season and you have too many pushy roosters harassing the hens and they retaliate? Cull. A bird pecks at another bird (natural instinct to peck at red) because it accidentally cut itself and is bleeding? Cull. You've stuffed too many birds in a small space and there's nowhere for the bottom birds to escape the top birds? Cull. You didn't put enough hides in and one of the birds is being territorial about the limited resources? Cull. Chick is 'too aggressive' in the brooder? Cull. I do imagine that overtime you will get more docile quail, for sure. And if they're going to cram them in like sadines, it is probably better for the birds to behave like potatoes. But I just find it interesting that the entire focus of "improving the animal" is really based on making the animal not an animal. Because animals and animal behavior is inconvenient for humans.