stupid question? Who buys them?

[lava]

So who buys, for example, fancy quail or fancy pheasants?
Do hunters with too much spare $ want those for pretty trophies or is there another market I'm missing?
Thanks!

 

[birdboy15]

There mostly an ornamental fowl. Also some people, like me, keep them for conservation and preservation purposes.

 

[Nicole01]

My husband's cousin bought 300 pheasants and let them go to keep the population up and let them go on his 100 acre lot. He did not hunt them.

 

[lava]

So like the cousin, did he buy 300 fancy ones that cost like $50 each and up, or just "boring" ones for a few $ each?

How big is the market for ornamental pheasants? (and are those sales done online or ? where do buyers and sellers find each other?)
I have to admit to an ulterior motive here--I'd really like to find an animal that will eventually pay for itself and a few others' feed.
Not a massive profit I'm looking for, just a modest one.

We enjoy our chickens and sell the eggs to friends and they about pay for themselves at this point.
My husband has been looking at quail, and it looks like the laws for meat or egg sales here (SC) are prohibitive of that, so he's looking at selling them for hunters (which honestly I'd rather sell them for meat, seems more humane to me, but apparently it's a big market for hunters).

I've been looking and have seen the mountain quail and the fancy pheasants and just trying to figure out if there's enough of a market to try our hand at breeding those.

I'd rather sell 10 of an ornamental bird that will get to hang out and live than 100 of a "cheap" one that will get hunted, but we don't have a of capitol to invest so I need to convince him there's a steady market for any of the ornamentals (and I know they are harder to breed, etc., been reading about that). I've also thought about fancy chickens, but again, not sure the market is there, or...? I'm open to advice and suggestions

Heck, if I had the funds I'd love to get into parrot breeding--I've worked for breeders and really enjoyed that, but we're nowhere near the $ for that

Thanks!

 

[birdboy15]

IMO if you make a profit your first couple of years your doing something wrong. I have been raising for 4 years now and still don't break even, thats not why I do it. Trust me, I get the money thing but im in H.S. and can still keep around 100 breeder birds on just my summer/after school job. The main way to sell is over the internet. I also sell at swap meets and poultry shows.

 

[Nicole01]

So like the cousin, did he buy 300 fancy ones that cost like $50 each and up, or just "boring" ones for a few $ each? How big is the market for ornamental pheasants? (and are those sales done online or ? where do buyers and sellers find each other?) I have to admit to an ulterior motive here--I'd really like to find an animal that will eventually pay for itself and a few others' feed. Not a massive profit I'm looking for, just a modest one. We enjoy our chickens and sell the eggs to friends and they about pay for themselves at this point. My husband has been looking at quail, and it looks like the laws for meat or egg sales here (SC) are prohibitive of that, so he's looking at selling them for hunters (which honestly I'd rather sell them for meat, seems more humane to me, but apparently it's a big market for hunters). I've been looking and have seen the mountain quail and the fancy pheasants and just trying to figure out if there's enough of a market to try our hand at breeding those. I'd rather sell 10 of an ornamental bird that will get to hang out and live than 100 of a "cheap" one that will get hunted, but we don't have a of capitol to invest so I need to convince him there's a steady market for any of the ornamentals (and I know they are harder to breed, etc., been reading about that). I've also thought about fancy chickens, but again, not sure the market is there, or...? I'm open to advice and suggestions Heck, if I had the funds I'd love to get into parrot breeding--I've worked for breeders and really enjoyed that, but we're nowhere near the $ for that Thanks!

They were reg pheasants. Not all of them stayed on his property, they were protected if they did. It was a lot of work, but he loved his birds. He had a nice flock of hens. He is the reason why we have chickens. Buying 300 was not cheap, but funding was never a problem for him buying, feeding or housing them until releasing them.

I honestly don't think there's a profit gain in these birds. With our flock, we lose money. Our hens are pets first, eggs second. We didn't expect our coop to cost as much as it did. It cost triple then what we were expecting. We still need to install the big silver fans on the wall before summer arrives. We also need to plant trees for better shading.

The eggs are great, but we do not sell any. The eggs we don't eat are given away, which rarely happens. I just bought 3 new chick just so I have some to give away.

There really is nothing wrong with hunting/fishing. People normally hunt for food. We got a deer last year and it was gone within a couple months, it's much better tasting then beef and it's healthier with less fat. Never has my husband hunted for a trophy kill. Neither would anyone else in the family. He doesn't hunt duck because we do not like the taste. It's a great skill if he's ever lost in Alaska on his salmon fishing trips. He brings home 40lbs of wild Alaskan salmon. Yum! I have only met one person in my life who went out of state to hunt. He'd bring home 4-6 deer, which is illegal in this state.

 

[Tony K T]

I raise them as a hobby.They are beautiful birds and need to be preserved for the future.There is no way you can make money raising them.The cost of feed is so high,the wood and wire to build the pens,the treats you give them and that doesn't include the man hours you have put into them,you can't make a profit.But it does feel good when you sell a few birds and get a little jingle in your pocket.And like most of us,the money we do get from them goes towards feed and more then likely another breed.
In N.H.,Tony.

 

[destinduck]

Tony ,I agree with you wholeheartedly. Shawn

 

[lava]

Just have to say those are gorgeous birds.

And to clarify I've got no beef with hunting, but canned hunts, whether quail or buffalo seem most unfair to me.

Unfortunately, some of us love or birds and other animals but can't afford anything. It'd be nice to be able to have them pay for themselves and pay for my time.
I'd prefer not to die in poverty but don't see much alternative.

 

[Themehmeh]

I always figured you could make a profit (eventually) off the feathers.