Phasants

[crossbeak]

Hi,
I may have to take care of my friends pheasants because he has cancer. I would like to know if they can eat layer pellets? I do not know to much about raising pheasants.

Thanks, Lee

 

[wolfpack62001]

Mornin Lee
Layer Pellets will do in a pinch, but its not so good in the long run.
If they are young feed them Purina Game Starter.
For Adult birds use Game Bird Scratch, anything you feed to Quail you can use for Pheasant.
Pheasent arnt all that easy to raise, I would get on the internet and learn all I can.
If you have any questions feel free to ask me, Ill help where I can.

 

[missusduray]

We decided to raise pheasants this year and I will share what I had to learn the hard way. Food is very important. Adults need 24% protein in their food. Young pheasants need 28%. If they dont get the right food they will peck eachother to death. They are very canibalistic. Also they require a lot of space. Any male pheasant over the age of 5 weeks will need a blinder so that it can not fight with the other males. There is so much more information. If you have any questions please feel free to e-mail me.
Kristyne
Good luck and it is a wonderful thing that you are doing for your friend!

 

[Royal Oaks Ranch]

Yep I agree, you need to feed them higher protein feed than is typically found in layer feed.
Scratch is a treat though and is low in protein, Adults can not live on scratch grains alone.. They still need the protein. GameCock scratch runs around 18% so you still need to add something to it.
For me raising pheasants are fairly easy. Yes they can be cannibalistic. However if raised in a large enough pen that can be avoided.. I used to have 300 breeders in each run. You do not have to have blinkers on if the pen is big enough. I never used blinkers, though on a few of the real agressive males I would put muzzles. Which basically is a plastic bar that goes around the beak to prevent them from doing any damage if they peck at another bird.
Most people run into trouble by not feeding high enough protein and over crowding the pen.. Pheasants require alot of room. If they are over crowded they will peck at each other. Males do not have to be seperated if they have enough room. Also helps to have bushes, hay bales and small a frame shelters in the run. Places for them to hide or jump on etc.. A post or two at different hieghts around the run also is nice. They like to get up on it and look around.
Always keep the feeders full and toss the scratch as a treat out on the ground for them to hunt and peck at... fresh grass and alfalfa, corn on the cob, etc. They also enjoy fresh fruit such as watermelon, canatloup, vegies from the garden etc. Spread the treats around so there is no crowding to get at them. Pheasants also like to fly... so the longer the pen is the better. Doesnt have to be a mile long pen but about 300 ft long pen is good for a short burst of energy. Use netting on the sides and top. Wire along the bottom 3 ft. this way they wont hurt themselves yet are still protected.
The bigger and more cover you put in the pen is beter for them..
Definetly read up on them if you wish to raise them. Main thing is space and proper feed.