Reeves pheasants questions

[Ironpoint]

Hey I'm trying raising Reeves pheasants. I have one cock and three hens. I have a few questions.
1. If they have a 16x32 pen can you allow the hens to hatch the young then take them to a brooding box? If yes will she attempt another nest?
2. Is that big enough that the cock after he molts will grow his tail back or is that too small and i should expect it to stay broken and short?
I plan to build a 50x150 flight pen but I don't have the money for an incubator right now. Thanks for any help!

 

[Bird_Lover_17]

@007Sean may be able to help you out.

 

[007Sean]

Hey I'm trying raising Reeves pheasants. I have one cock and three hens. I have a few questions.
1. If they have a 16x32 pen can you allow the hens to hatch the young then take them to a brooding box? If yes will she attempt another nest?
2. Is that big enough that the cock after he molts will grow his tail back or is that too small and i should expect it to stay broken and short?
I plan to build a 50x150 flight pen but I don't have the money for an incubator right now. Thanks for any help!

Question #1.
The pen is large enough for your birds. The hens will most likely not try to hatch their eggs or go broody but it could happen! It would be best to collect the eggs and incubate them and raise the chicks in a brooder, then moving them to a grow out pen.

Question #2.
The tail feathers will regrow after molting. In a confined space, their tail feathers will rub on the enclosures wire, walls and if not fully covered shelter, will drag them through the mud when it rains. All of which will affect the quality of the tail feathers and will result in broken tail feathers...even in large enclosures.

 

[Midnightman14]

I would not expect the hens to incubate their own eggs. Pheasants are extremely high strung birds and in order to get them to set without abandoning the eggs you'd almost have to recreate their habitat inside the pen.

 

[Gotbirdsohyeah]

My 2 hens both set and hatched chicks with male in with them.The only problem is the chicks find holes and disappear.If your pens are bomb proof,I would let the hens raise their chicks.it is much easier then having to brood them yourself.
In N.H.,Tony.

 

[Ironpoint]

The ground will have a close to the same habitat that a wild ring neck uses. I know reeves in China are more of a woodland birds but I don't have any way to recreate that so I'm hoping the corn, grass, and other cover is good enough.

 

[Ironpoint]

Tony the pen will have chicken wire around the entire base and tin around the north and west to block some wind. I'm aiming for dog proof and hopefully chick proof if I have two pens one large and one smaller would they be more likely to go broody in the 50x150 or the 16x32 do you think?

 

[Gotbirdsohyeah]

Mine are in an 8x16and both hens set and hatched.The only problem is the hens kept trying to keep all chicks to themselves.I enjoy watching parents raise their owns chicks.Like I said earlier your pens need to be bomb proof,because if there's one little hole,the little buggers will find it.
Bamboo looks good in an aviary but you need make sure it doesn't get out off control.

 

[Gotbirdsohyeah]

You also need to think about predators from up above,coons,cats,hawks,eagles,owls ect.

 

[Ironpoint]

I live in North Dakota, the only bamboo here is dried and sold as fishing poles, little too cold for it. Predators from above are generally stopped by the net covering the whole pen. The coons and cats don't hang around long because I run a dog training and boarding kennel but I will certainly keep an eye on the pen if something starts digging or pulling at the fencing. Would you recommend keeping them in the smaller pen to hatch and brood or move them to the big pen? Thanks so much for all the help!