Company quarters for beasts (4)
I believe the answer is:
cows
'beasts' is the definition.
(cow is a kind of beast)
'company quarters' is the wordplay.
'company' becomes 'co' (abbreviation).
'quarters' becomes 'ws' ().
'co'+'ws'='COWS'
'for' is the link.
(Other definitions for cows that I've seen before include "Domesticated bovine animals" , "Farm animals" , "Female cattle" , "Female bovines" , "Milk providers" .)