Japanese quail are among the most intensively farmed birds globally for egg and meat production, yet welfare standards for this species lag behind those for chickens.
Quail welfare represents a regulatory gap in poultry protection. While laying hens in many jurisdictions have benefited from cage-free transitions and enrichment requirements, quail often remain in conditions equivalent to battery cages that have been phased out for chickens. The regulatory exclusion of quail from poultry welfare standards is difficult to justify scientifically, as their cognitive and pain capabilities are equivalent to chickens. Feather pecking and cannibalism in intensive quail systems indicate severe frustration of natural behaviors that enrichment and lower stocking density could substantially reduce.