Breeding pheasants at home, like any farming business, has pros and cons. If you use advanced technologies and listen to the advice of experienced entrepreneurs, you can quickly recoup your investment. Wild pheasant meat has long been valued by hunters because unsurpassed taste. Nowadays, many farms successfully breed different breeds of these beautiful birds. An additional reason for raising pheasants is eggs. expensive dietary product.
The main thing is to follow an integrated approach: pheasants are distinguished by their whimsicality to conditions, their maintenance is not cheap. But a high-status restaurant or cafe will be more willing to buy naturally raised pheasant meat from you at a favorable price.
Description of pheasant
Galliform large birds stand out for their gracefulness and beautiful plumage. Only male pheasants have bright feathers; females have darker color patterns. For home breeding, farmers often use decorative, meat and egg-laying varieties of birds. Golden pheasant brought from China. The appearance of a male of an ornamental breed fully reflects the name of the bird variety. A lush golden-yellow crest is placed on the head; the neck is surrounded by a high collar of bright orange feathers with velvety black edging at the tips. The feathers above the tail also shimmer with a golden hue.
Diamond pheasants They are also extremely beautiful and are often purchased for zoos. Homeland - Tibet. The male of the heat-loving breed has a black crest, the feathers have red spots at the end. The forehead, cheeks, chin and throat area, back and sides are covered with shiny green feathers. On the back of the head and neck collar there are silvery light feathers with a dark border. The chest, belly and “pants” are completely white. The tail feathers are distinguished by their length and bright red color.
Steppe hunting pheasant- a representative of the egg-laying breed. Gets along well in temperate climates. The breed has strong immunity, is not afraid of sudden temperature changes and is unpretentious in its diet. For breeding meat poultry, it is better to opt for the silver pheasant. Its long, beautiful feathers are used to make decorative accessories and stuffed animals.
Choose a bird breed not only by appearance - consider the ease of caring for a pheasant. At the initial stage of running a new business, purchase representatives of the hunting breed of birds. They are most adapted to our climate.
Requirements for keeping poultry
Organizing a farm for breeding pheasants will require considerable financial investments. For profitable breeding, it is necessary to take care of a suitable space for keeping families of pheasants (useful area of the enclosure from 5 sq. m). Before starting construction, you need to decide on the breed of bird for breeding:
- birds for hunting It is better to keep them in high cages so that they learn to fly;
- meat breeds will not require high barriers;
- taking into account the resistance of the breed to frost Instead of transferring individuals to insulated winter huts, consider a removable fence and roof for the enclosure in winter.
Adult pheasants in a large herd often pluck each other's feathers. Farmers who know how to raise pheasants at home recommend purchasing special plastic glasses for birds to preserve their feather cover. Accessories can be ordered from craftsmen in large quantities.
Each breed has individual requirements for everyday food. The food must contain sufficient amounts of calcium and protein. If there is a lack of food, pheasants can eat their neighbors in the enclosure.
Did you know? Female pheasants have poor memory - they often forget where their eggs are laid. Depending on the breed, pheasants leave eggs in different places - on the ground, in bushes and even in trees. Therefore, there is a growing need to purchase an incubator.
The bird needs to create conditions as close as possible to wild nature. Therefore, if there is a lack of experience in poultry breeding, it is advisable to purchase grown-up young animals.
Egg incubation
An adult female produces about a hundred eggs per year. She is physically unable to incubate such a quantity. The construction of an incubator will help solve the problem. The device will quickly recoup all investments, because pheasant chicks are in constant demand on the market. Incubation for any species of birds will always seem like a complex technological process. In captivity, pheasants practically do not reproduce, so it is important to equip an incubator and insulated cages for future offspring.
Females begin laying eggs approximately 14-20 days after mating. It is advisable to move the hatched eggs from the hen after 20-22 days to the incubator. From the beginning of the laying period, pheasants quickly increase their egg production until the end of spring - beginning of summer. Then the number of eggs laid gradually decreases. Provided that the farmer collects the laid eggs daily, the female will be able to give about five dozen during the nesting period.
Important! Almost 79% of chickens hatch from pheasant eggs. Ordinary hens are often used for incubation - they perceive pheasant eggs as their future offspring.
Raising chicks
Producing pheasant chicks from eggs from a home farm is an affordable and budget option. But the growing offspring produced on one's own farm are not always enough. Buy pheasant chicks from nearby farmers. When purchasing young animals, choose well-fed and lively specimens, without visible external damage. For the first 3-4 months, the chicks have no sexual differences, the final color is visible in the second year of life after the summer molt. A broken feather in a chick's wing is not considered a serious defect. In two to three weeks, a new one will grow to replace what is torn out. Every year at the beginning of the summer season, a gradual renewal of plumage occurs.
If you managed to prepare eggs in an incubator for hatching pheasants, prepare to maintain a stable temperature of +28°C for the first three days. For food, prepare a finely chopped boiled chicken egg along with herbs; feeding with mealworms is allowed. Over the next month, gradually reduce the temperature to +20°C to prepare young pheasants for life in an open enclosure. Grown-up young animals can take food intended for adult pheasants on the farm.
Aviary structure
In wild natural conditions, pheasants quickly fly away at the first danger or hide in the branches of bushes or the low crown of trees. A familiar shelter created on a farm, in the form of an aviary for a pair of birds, should have a minimum size of 1.5 x 2 m. A perch for night sleep is made of wooden poles at a height of up to 2 meters.
There are some rules for arranging a pheasant enclosure:
- for arranging a poultry house, give preference to a dry place;
- wall material – galvanized steel, cell size – 16 x 24 mm (to protect feed from theft by other birds);
- a layer of sand with an admixture of ash (up to 10%) is the best option for sprinkling the flooring of an aviary; it requires replacement after heavy contamination with bird waste;
- to protect the poultry house from rodents, it is advisable to provide a mesh floor under a layer of sand;
- pheasants practice "bathing", so place low trays in the cage with the above mixture of ash and sand;
- take care of the reliable installation of steel feeders and drinkers - the pheasant should not turn over with its legs or climb on them;
- at the beginning of the mating and nesting period, the enclosure is supplemented with special huts for females with two exits from reeds or reeds; to simplify nesting, females throw dry leaves, moss and grass, and thin tree branches into the enclosure;
- portable aviary cages must be equipped with overhead shading from the sun's rays;
- The rear walls of the enclosure should be protected from windy and rainy weather with a polycarbonate sheet.
- the enclosure must be adapted to quickly search for laid eggs - females tend to forget the laying sites and this role is transferred to the farmer.
In addition to the above items, there is no need to come up with additional devices for breeding pheasants at home in order to avoid crowding for the birds. A decorative aviary in the garden with a true imitation of the usual space for birds in the wild will require more territory. To decorate the landscape, you will need to plant living trees and bushes for perching and arrange a flowing stream (pond).
Breeding season
The broodstock is formed from large healthy young animals obtained from active egg-laying pheasants. Optimal age for mating:
- for females – from 8 to 18 months;
- for males – from 1 to 2.5 years.
Farmers who specialize in breeding a specific breed do not use birds that are 2-3 years old, replacing them with young animals. Pheasants with chronic diseases or after serious injuries are culled. Avoid keeping several males in one enclosure during mating season– birds become aggressive and can harm each other.
During the mating season, one male and two or three females are placed in a cage. To form a pheasant family, it is necessary to select individuals who are not united by family ties. If the birds selected for the family do not show interest in mating, family members must be replaced with others.
Feeding pheasants during the mating season is slightly different. A month before the nesting period, special preparations with an antibiotic effect are introduced into the diet of adult individuals. This is important for increasing the egg production of pheasants during the breeding season (by 20-45%). Antibiotics increase the number of fertilized eggs. One of the drugs is administered per 1 kg of feed:
- 21.5 g erythromycin;
- 0.3 g penicillin sodium;
- 1.1 g Terramix;
- 0.7 g biovit-40;
- 0.02 g biomycin.
By the beginning of the nesting period, in order to obtain new offspring, it is necessary to thoroughly clean and disinfect the cages of the poultry house. Optimal conditions for arranging nests must be created for females. In the wild, pheasants nest in bushes. Taking this feature into account, several rare bushes are planted or several vertical sheaves closely connected to each other are placed, reminiscent of the structure of a hut. Desirable material for “sheltering” the female:
- cereal stems;
- corn tops;
- reed;
- cane.
Features of pheasant breeding
If you have not yet been able to learn from your own experience how to raise pheasants at home, start by purchasing young animals for the farm. It is important to do this in different regions of the country. Breeding chicks through inbreeding will result in low disease resistance of the brood and poor fertility rates. Keep track of the number of females in each enclosure – there should not be more than three individuals per male.
During the mating period, you need to carefully observe the behavior of the male. Sometimes he shows pronounced aggression towards females. For the comfort of females, special protective enclosure fences are built. Birds will be completely safe in them and will be able to nest to lay fertilized eggs. For an overly active male, sometimes it is necessary to increase the number of females to 4-7 individuals.
Before purchasing a sexual partner for a bird, ask the seller about the method of creating cells that is typical for this breed. They come in two varieties: monogamous and polygamous. For the second species, 3-4 females will be needed, and this will lead to a decrease in egg laying. Monogamous families are housed in pairs in separate cages. Pheasants show unprecedented aggressiveness towards males of their species, but at the same time they calmly get along, for example, with smaller songbirds. When choosing “neighbors” in the poultry house, choose unpretentious and granivorous breeds.
Feeding pheasants
Feeding adults
Pheasants are unpretentious to food. Suitable for everyday food:
- greens (plantain leaves, wood lice, dandelions);
- leftover food from your table (cereal porridge, cottage cheese, chopped vegetables, baked goods, pieces of meat);
- grain mixtures (sunflower seeds, corn grains, oats, millet, millet, etc.);
- legumes (beans, peas, soybeans);
- berries and fruits from your garden:
- insects and worms.
Did you know? The pheasant is the only bird that eats the Colorado potato beetle. Regularly introducing adult young animals into potato beds will help preserve the harvestah.
During the mating season, food should be high in calories. In winter, balance your food with healthy dry rowan berries and apples. The daily food intake in the cold season is 75-80 g. In the summer, crushed lime, chalk and shell rock are mixed into the food - important substances for the formation of shells and beautiful plumage. It is important to ensure there is enough water in the drinking bowls.
Feeding the chicks
After the primary egg feed, grain admixtures are gradually introduced into the daily diet of pheasant chicks. The chicks' diet should contain:
- corn in the amount of ½ of the weight of food;
- grain in a similar quantity;
- barley (no more than 40% of the feed contents).
Pheasant is considered to be cold-resistant bird. But owners of pheasant farms recommend adhering to special conditions for keeping pheasants in winter. In cold weather, pheasants are whimsical due to the lack of free space in the cage. For climatic zones where persistent winter frosts are observed, it is advisable to adapt an aviary for wintering birds. The bottom of the cages is lined with warm material, and canopies are built to protect from the frosty wind. The aviary is supplemented with artificial lamp lighting so that the birds do not forget to eat the right amount of food.
Pay attention to the bird’s well-being if you notice a disruption in its usual daily routine. Pheasants of different breeds suffer from three types of ailments: infectious, non-contagious, invasive.
The first type includes viral smallpox. An infectious disease often leads to the death of birds. Signs of smallpox: rashes on the paws and scalp where feathers do not grow; heavy breathing and hoarseness in the voice; general exhaustion and loss of appetite. The disease is treated with antiviral medications, and the resulting rash is treated with Lugol's solution.
Laryngotracheitis virus transmitted by air after consuming food and water contaminated with pathogenic microbes. The latent period is 1-5 days. Signs of illness: poor appetite; cough and sneezing; dyspnea; decreased egg production in females; defective shell of laid eggs. Treatment is prescribed by a veterinarian after laboratory test results.
Aspergillosis caused by a fungal infection. The disease affects the bronchi and air sacs. Signs of a fungal disease: excessive thirst, increased interest in drinking, blueness of the beak and paws. To get rid of avian fungus, the veterinarian prescribes antifungal aerosols.
The group of non-communicable diseases includes dermatitis. After a skin injury, red inflammation occurs; over time, it becomes covered with a brown crust. The disease requires an integrated approach and duration of treatment with antibiotics and vitamin preparations. Skin wounds should be lubricated with iodine solution.
Emphysema causes the formation of unnatural bumps throughout the body, which mix together when pressed. After punctures, air comes out of the holes. The cause of the disease lies in the rupture of the walls of the air sac. Signs: pheasant immobility, refusal to eat. The disease is treated by restricting mobility by placing it in a tight cage and applying a cloth bandage to the wings. The blisters should be constantly punctured and treated with antiseptic liquids.
The third type of disease characteristic of domestic pheasants is scabies. The skin disease is caused by mites. Signs of mange: calcareous growths from the corner of the beak; gradual baldness of the head; damage to the feathers of the body. For treatment, the affected areas are carefully cleaned and lubricated with Neguven solution (0.15%).
Pheasants are also at risk of infection small lice eaters in the warm season. The carriers of pest larvae are mosquitoes and midges. Pheasants cope with the disease on their own by taking a “bath” from a mixture of ash and sand. In advanced cases, it is necessary to treat the individual’s body with insecticidal medications.
Sales of products
There are several ways to make a profit from a pheasant farm. A profitable type of income is considered sale of pheasant eggs. By nature, females lay several times more eggs than they can hatch. Incubator equipment and sale of chicks. Quick payback - within one month you can return the funds invested in the construction of the incubator. Eggs for culinary purposes are priced from 55 to 200 rubles. for 1 piece The dietary product is highly appreciated by allergists and is recommended for baby food.
The second direction of pheasant farms is sale of purebred pheasants. You will be presented with a profitable deal for the supply of poultry to hunting farms. For wealthy people, pheasant hunting has always been a favorite hobby; for farmers, it is a unique opportunity to earn from 1,250 to 1,600 rubles. for the wholesale sale of adult birds. Businessmen often buy collectible pheasants for country mini-zoos. The correct selection of decorative species will allow you to secure a comfortable future for yourself.
Sale of birds for catering needs– the third direction for permanent income of a farm. Exotic tender pheasant meat is in great demand due to its taste properties. You can profitably sell fresh carcasses to elite restaurants for banquets. The cost of 1 kg of pheasant meat now starts from 1.5 thousand rubles. Feel free to enter into direct regular supply agreements with restaurateurs. Pheasant meat is not sold in public trade, so your farm will quickly gain a permanent sales channel for your dietary product.
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Breeding pheasants is a very profitable business if you do it for the purpose of making money. Such a business has a large number of advantages. You will gain invaluable experience in keeping and breeding birds at home, which will be very useful to you in the future.
Today we will talk about breeding pheasants at home for beginners who are just planning to raise them for sale or meat, etc.
Pheasants: breeding and keeping at home
Pheasant farming is very expensive occupation, since these birds are very demanding about their living conditions and their diet. And they are also extraordinary cowardly, even with imaginary danger, a pheasant can suddenly fly away from its owners. Therefore, it is not recommended to make sudden movements or make loud noises near enclosures.
Birds prone to injury, especially when they are trying to hide. To prevent this from happening, poultry farmers recommend stretching a fishing net in the cage where the pets sit. The mesh will help mitigate head impacts that can lead to death.
Pheasants should not be limited in space. The aviary needs to be done spacious, it should include a perch and a place to sleep. To do this, place it there poles and tree branches.
At home, you need to provide pheasants with proper nutrition. Food should be varied, balanced and regular. You can give them regular feed, just like other domestic birds. Must be present in the diet foods with calcium:
- lump chalk;
- crushed shell;
- lime.
The diet should also include protein, it is found in meat and fish waste. If you don't give it, the birds may peck each other.
How for a beginner to choose the right pheasants for keeping and growing
The most budget-friendly way to obtain pheasants for subsequent breeding at home is from eggs, but you can purchase chickens from breeders.
- well-fed;
- lively;
- there are no noticeable wounds or damage.
If you are buying sexual partners for birds for subsequent breeding, be sure to ask how the chosen type of pheasant creates a family. According to the method of connecting partners, pheasants are divided into monogamous and polygamous.
If these are polygamous males, then for each of them you need to get about four females. But monogamous partners should be placed in pairs in cages.
It is worth noting that it is most profitable buy chicks in the fall, but in the spring they are more expensive due to the seasonal rush. Beginners also need to know that the price of females on the market is higher than that of males. If you do not plan to breed a certain type of pheasant in the future, you can purchase a female of an inexpensive breed and mate her with a purebred male. The difference in breeds will not affect their coexistence, and egg production will be high. The eggs will produce offspring, but another question is that these will be chicks of mixed breeds, the appearance of which may not be the most attractive.
How to set up an enclosure for pheasants at home
To prepare for keeping pheasants, you need to understand the conditions they are used to in the wild. So, at the slightest danger, they fly away or hide in the branches of trees. These birds in nature have many enemies, For example:
- dogs;
- cats;
- ferrets.
At home or on a farm, pheasants need to have enclosures. For a monogamous family, they should be one and a half by two meters in size; it is in them that the birds will feel free.
It is not recommended to keep several males in one pen at the same time during the mating season, since the birds are aggressive and there is a risk that they will injure each other. If you plan to keep birds for non-breeding purposes, you can raise a large number of males. They are inexpensive because their birth rate is higher than that of females.
During the period when males are kept together, they become mobile and can threaten others through the net. It is recommended to keep young males together for up to a year and in winter. At other times they need to be separated.
The floor in the enclosure should be sprinkled with a layer of sand; the birds will “swim” in it. Sand is also good for collecting bird waste. If the sand is heavily contaminated, it can be easily removed and replaced with a new layer. About 10 percent ash can be added to this sand mixture. If the aviary has a clay floor, then boxes with a mixture of sand and ash are installed for such “bathing” of the birds.
For drinking and feeding, you need to install drinking bowls and feeders. They should be installed so that pheasants do not climb inside with their legs and turn them over.
For rest and sleep, arrange perches at a height of about two meters based on poles. At the very beginning of the nesting time and mating season, you need to make and install so-called hut houses with a couple of exits. They are equipped on the basis of reeds or reeds. To make a nest, you can give the female the following ingredients:
- feathers;
- dry leaves and grass;
- thin branches.
Besides all this, there is no need to put or equip anything additional in the enclosure so that the pheasants do not break their tail feathers. But such a loss is not too terrible, since a broken feather can be easily pulled out of the plumage, the bird will not be hurt, and a new one will grow in its place.
If desired, you can make a decorative enclosure that imitates the natural landscape. But this will require more space. In such an enclosure you can plant shrubs, trees, and place dry trunks and branches for arranging a perch. You can also sow grass or even make a pond with running water.
If you have the financial opportunity, then it is better to equip the enclosure for pheasants fully, which would imitate the natural environment as much as possible.
Such gardens for keeping pheasants at home are most suitable only in the summer, but in the cold season the birds are transferred to specialized enclosures. There are also portable enclosures with fencing mesh and shading from the sun.
You should also provide a place for laying if you are breeding pheasants. Laying can be done in sand, nests, grass or even on tree branches.
To create the most comfortable conditions for keeping birds, you need to take into account the characteristics of keeping pheasants of the breed you have chosen. Thus, females of a number of breeds may forget about the place where eggs are laid, so an enclosure is made for them, where you can go in on your own and find the eggs.
The possibility of birds mating with each other should be planned for February-March, but birds will lay eggs in late spring and until the end of summer.
Beginners should definitely carefully study the behavior of birds, for example, on one monogamous pair. If everything goes well, then you can increase the number of livestock.
What should an aviary be like?
When building an enclosure, consider the following:
- build it in a dry place;
- to prevent outside birds from stealing food, the walls of the structure must be made on the basis of a steel mesh with cells up to 25 mm in size;
- To prevent rats from entering the enclosure, line the bottom of the cage with a steel mesh under sand;
- make one of the walls of the structure based on solid material to protect it from the wind;
- To store food supplies for birds, install sheet steel at the entrance. Place your cleaning equipment there.
How to properly feed pheasants at home
Keeping pheasants also requires proper nutrition. These birds are not too fussy in this regard and eat a lot, for example:
- greens, including dandelions, chickweed, plantain or squash;
- remnants of human food - meat, flour products, coughs, cottage cheese or vegetables;
- mixtures of grains (millet, corn, millet and much more);
- fruits and berries.
In order for individuals to successfully reproduce and be healthy, their diet must be varied. The food must contain enough calories. In the cold season, the diet of birds should include cereals, hay and grain. They can be diluted with berries and fruits, for example, apples or dry rowan. In severe frosts, high-calorie food based on sunflower seeds must be present in the feeders. Pheasants are fed in winter at the rate of 80 grams per day.
But in the summer, birds are fed mainly with green food, as well as crushed food waste. In order to better crush and digest food in the esophagus and stomach of birds, you can add fine gravel and coarse sand to the feed. To ensure that birds get vitamins into their bodies after the end of winter, crushed shell rock, lime and chalk should be added to the feed in early spring. These mineral formations will allow the feathers to grow more rapidly and also provide the soil for the formation of eggshells.
Do I need to add additives to the feed?
During growth, to gain sufficient weight, one pheasant must eat about five kilograms of food. He gains maximum weight at about four months. The diet must include:
Bone meal should be added to grain crops and green mass.
As you can see, there is nothing complicated regarding nutrition. Keeping pheasants at home is carried out in almost the same way as other birds.
Breeding pheasants at home is not only a profitable business, but also very fun and interesting activity. Beginners in this business will probably have a difficult time, but then, having acquired the necessary knowledge and skills, they will be able to achieve noticeable success.
By growing pheasants, you get the opportunity to stock up on quality meat and decorate your garden with unusual birds. Pheasant breeding is carried out according to certain rules, taking into account the characteristics of the birds and their requirements for food and living conditions.
This article describes the main nuances of keeping these birds at home. You will learn about the main features and conditions of their cultivation, as well as the overall profitability of the business.
Features of pheasant breeding
Raising these rare birds at home for beginners may seem difficult at first glance, but in reality, providing them with optimal living conditions, you will not face any difficulties.
Note: They have a shy nature, so they can easily fly away or run away from humans. To prevent this from happening, spacious mesh enclosures with a height of at least two meters are installed. The top of the structure must be covered with nylon mesh.
No less attention should be paid to feed. Representatives of this species eat a lot, so you need to prepare a lot of different foods for them, including green, juicy and grains, as well as regularly prepare wet mash and provide mineral supplements.
Breeding principles
Raising livestock on a farm is based not only on the purpose of keeping (for hunting, meat or eggs), but also on the physiological characteristics of the birds (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Features of incubation at home Depending on the breed, there is a clear division into family and group keeping. Family means that only a family consisting of a male and a female lives in one enclosure. In group walking, one male and 4-5 females are released.
It is also important to take into account that they have poor memory, so females lay eggs throughout the enclosure. Because of this feature, it is necessary to immediately build a paddock so that the owner does not spend a lot of time searching for masonry.
Breeding pheasants at home: video
You will find more details about pheasants, their physiological characteristics, maintenance and feeding in the video.
Breeding pheasants on the farm
Many novice poultry farmers are interested in the question of why such cultivation is practiced not only in large, but also in small farms. This is explained, first of all, by the wide market for the products.
Firstly, they are kept to obtain eggs for their own consumption and for sale. Secondly, carcasses are in high demand on the market and thirdly, they are used for further sale to zoological and hunting farms.
Peculiarities
Raising such livestock on a farm has certain features that distinguish these birds from others.
First of all, they should not be kept in closed cages. In such conditions, their productivity and egg production are significantly reduced. It is best to equip several spacious enclosures with poultry houses in which they can hide at night or hide from the rain (Figure 2).
If you plan to independently breed young animals, you must definitely buy an incubator with a grid of the appropriate size. Females of this species are poor brood hens, as they have a timid character and easily abandon the laying site.
Conditions
In order for the livestock to be productive, several important nuances must be observed. First, you need to build one or more enclosures (if several families will be kept). A light canopy or poultry house is installed on the walking area in which individuals can rest.
Figure 2. Enclosures for keeping livestock on a farm Secondly, you need to stock up on a sufficient amount of a variety of feed. Adults eat a lot, but food costs are fully recouped when meat and eggs are sold.
In addition, you need to prepare an incubator in advance for hatching young animals. Females practically do not hatch their young, as they simply forget about the laying site.
Profitability
Growing this species is considered a fairly profitable business. Apart from the costs of building an enclosure (which will last you for many years) and purchasing food, there will be practically no other financial waste.
All adult individuals tolerate even the most severe frosts well, so there is no need to install additional heating devices in the poultry house. In addition, the market has a very high demand not only for eggs and meat, but also for live animals, which are fattened and sold to hunting farms.
Fattening pheasants for hunting is profitable only if you are confident that you can raise full-fledged adults. In other words, before starting such a business you need to practice a little (Figure 3).
Breeding Features
As a rule, only certain breeds are raised for hunting. Only adult individuals go on sale, and their price is quite high and fully covers the costs of food and arrangement of the enclosure.
Figure 3. Raising birds for hunting farms In addition to being raised for hunting, elite breeds are raised for private zoos and animal farms. In this case, the cost of purchasing young animals is significantly higher, and the keeping of birds must be treated very carefully.
You will learn more information on the topic from the video.
Silver pheasant: breeding
The silver breed is valued for its unusual color and beautiful crest on the head. It was bred in China, but is now successfully grown in our country (Figure 4).
Birds are unpretentious, but it will be better if you equip them with a spacious aviary with a small poultry house, trees and shrubs around the perimeter. The top of the aviary must be covered with a net so that the birds do not fly away.
Figure 4. Growing silver breed at home You can feed them any grain crops, fresh herbs, wet mash and chopped root vegetables.
King pheasant: breeding
The Royal also belongs to the elite breeds, so it is often bred for further sale to hunting farms and zoos (Figure 5).
Figure 5. Representatives of the royal breed This breed reproduces quite readily in captivity, but, as is the case with other species, it is better to hatch young animals in an incubator.
In the past, pheasants were rarely raised at home, but these birds have now become widely popular due to their delicious meat and eggs. Keeping pheasants is practiced both for personal consumption and on an industrial scale.
This article describes the main points of raising these birds at home. You will learn what kind of care and living conditions they need, and you will also be able to use practical examples of arranging enclosures with photos and videos.
Features of care and maintenance of pheasants
The main feature of keeping them at home is the aviary, in which the birds will stay even in winter (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Keeping females and males in enclosures Representatives of this species tolerate cold well, which is possible due to the thick feather cover. The aviary must be surrounded by a net and covered with a roof, since the birds can fly away.
For adult pheasants
Adults are picky about food and require only high-quality products. They also love cleanliness in the enclosure and independently maintain the cleanliness of their plumage, and replacing water in drinking bowls and removing uneaten food from the feeder should be done in a timely manner.
Note: Raising such livestock on a personal plot requires special care, but this process pays for itself in meat products and a high level of egg production.
The diet of adults mostly consists of wheat, barley and corn. However, they can be given cake and raw vegetables, which are given in crushed form. If you need to increase productivity, you can add the following components:
- Fish fat;
- Fishmeal;
- Nutritional supplements for breeding birds.
Raising productive livestock at home is impossible to imagine without proper care of young animals, the main nuances of which will be described below.
For the little ones
Chicks require special conditions during the first month of life. In the first three days, the temperature in the room should be at least 28 degrees, which is then gradually lowered until the chicks are one month old. Already at the age of one month, small individuals can be released into the aviary, but when the temperature drops below 20 degrees, they should be driven into the house (Figure 2).
Figure 2. Keeping chicks in a brooder and aviary For food, small animals are given a hard-boiled egg, which is mixed with herbs. From the age of two months, young animals can begin to be fed according to the diet of adults.
Rules of care
Caring for pheasants at home requires maintaining cleanliness in the enclosure throughout the year. In the summer, it is worth changing the water in the drinking bowls more often and cleaning the enclosure. During the winter cold, it is necessary to regularly remove snow from the enclosure. However, the water does not need to be heated (it should be cool, but not icy).
It is also necessary to treat birds with care, as they are very sensitive to stress. There should be enough feeders and drinkers in the enclosure, since stronger individuals may not allow weaker ones to approach the feeds and drinkers.
Conditions
One individual requires 1.5-2 square meters. area in the enclosure for good growth, and for a pair during the breeding season, 9.3 square meters are needed. The aviary should be surrounded with a metal mesh and its upper part covered with a soft mesh, this way you can prevent possible injury to the birds. Also, along the outer perimeter of the enclosure, various green bushes should be planted, which are readily eaten by adults and young animals.
Single males should be housed in one enclosure with four females, and family ones should be housed separately. Also, partitions should be made between such cells, since males may start fighting.
How to keep pheasants at home: video
You can see in detail how to keep pheasants at home in the video. It shows what growing and feeding conditions should be provided for birds to maintain high egg and meat productivity.
Fortunately, these birds tolerate even severe frosts well. However, individuals tolerate such cold weather best with a large amount of food, but at the same time it is worth making a cover with warm bedding in the enclosure (Figure 3).
The features and conditions of winter growing at home will be described in detail below.
Peculiarities
In a household, you can practice keeping it without building a poultry house for the entire livestock. It is recommended to build a cover or a small booth with warm flooring in each cage so that the birds can keep warm at temperatures below minus 20 degrees.
Figure 3. Features of keeping an enclosure in winter Pheasants can be kept in a cage almost all seasons of the year, with the exception of rain or snow. It is also imperative to install partitions between enclosures, since fights over territory may occur between males.
Content Rules
The floor of the enclosure should be covered with gravel or sand. The frame of the aviary should be sheathed with a mesh with a mesh size of 1.5 * 1.5, since chain-link is not recommended for such purposes due to the high level of injury to birds.
Note: Installing a canopy will help protect birds from the summer heat and any precipitation.
Family individuals should be placed in separate cages, and single ones in one enclosure (one male for four females). On average, one individual needs 1.5 square meters of area.
Arrangement of the enclosure
Pheasants are considered ground birds that will happily perch on low tree branches. Instead of branches, you can install small poles and the leisure of the individuals will be organized. You can also install various stone structures to decorate the interior and provide opportunities for birds to climb on them (Figure 4).
Figure 4. Options for arranging an enclosure The ground can be sown with different forage grasses so that birds can feed directly from the growing greenery. Forage grasses are of great importance for a complete feeding ration.
Silver pheasant: breeding and maintenance
Representatives of this breed have a wide and long crest, on which there are thread-like plumage of black color. The front part of the head has no hair and is bald, but it has a bright red color.
Breeding this breed allows you to obtain meat carcasses containing a low level of fat.
Rules
In households, silver pheasants are unpretentious in terms of keeping conditions and can tolerate low temperatures well (Figure 5). When kept in an enclosure, males should be separated into separate cages, since they are pugnacious and can attack other individuals. Males can also attack other birds in the household.
Figure 5. Features of the silver content Thanks to their strong plumage, representatives of this breed can withstand severe frosts and gusty windy weather. It is also necessary to arrange a pond near the aviary, which will serve as a large drinking bowl for birds.
Peculiarities
You can add food for geese and chickens to the feeding ration. The biggest feature of birds of this breed is their high level of egg production.
They can produce up to 40 eggs in one season. Individuals also have strong immunity and can survive most different diseases.
Diamond pheasant: content
The back and neck of the diamond pheasant are green, and the crest is red. In the belly area the plumage is yellow, but the tail is colored black. Females are much smaller in size and weight, but they begin to lay eggs from the age of six months.
Rules
Note: In aviary conditions, the birds behave very calmly and go into the arms of a person.
The feeding diet of this species is identical to that of chicken. To speed up weight gain, you should add fish oil to your food.
Figure 6. Rules for keeping representatives of diamond rock in summer and winter They tolerate winter cold conditions very well, but it is recommended to build a covered shed or poultry house, which will be insulated and the floor covered with warm bedding.
Peculiarities
Diamond pheasants eat almost all grains, root vegetables and greens. The use of fish oil and phosphorus has a beneficial effect on the easy digestion of food, as well as on the gain of live weight in birds.
Golden pheasant: breeding and maintenance
The golden pheasant was bred in the highlands of China and is popular among poultry farmers for its tasty meat, and is also kept as a beautiful ornamental pet. The decorative effect is based on the bright colors of the plumage of the individuals.
They have a golden crest on their head, which has a black border and an orange rim. The area of the back and rump is gold, but the belly is bright red. Females do not have such a bright crest; they have it gray-brown.
Rules
This breed does not get along with its relatives, and they should be kept in separate enclosures (Figure 7). It also doesn’t hurt to install partitions between the enclosures to limit contact between birds. In enclosures it is worth making various stone slides or perches, which will give individuals the opportunity to actively spend time. You can also plant a variety of green grass for them to pluck.
Figure 7. Keeping golden pheasants in enclosures at home Young females produce up to 20 eggs in one season, and older females produce up to 45. With timely removal of eggs, the efficiency of egg production can be increased by up to 35%. In addition, they can withstand low temperatures (down to -35 degrees).
Peculiarities
The meat of golden pheasants is highly valued among culinary gourmets for its exquisite and excellent taste, and it is also dietary. However, despite their strong resistance to low temperatures, they have very weak immunity, and they are easily susceptible to various diseases. To prevent diseases in livestock, it is necessary to give birds broad-spectrum antibiotics.
Pheasants are conditionally domesticated, beautiful, exotic birds, the breeding of which is not difficult and can bring a substantial income. You can admire pheasants, you can hunt them, and their meat is a favorite delicacy, very tasty and healthy. They live almost throughout the entire territory of Russia. Historically, pheasants are perceived as the birds of kings and nobility. If in the USA and Europe the business of raising pheasants is a fairly common phenomenon, then in Russia mini-farms, as well as just small poultry houses, are still a rarity.
The pheasant farm is a corner of exotic wildlife that attracts the attention of many people. Graceful birds with magnificent plumage (both males and females) proudly walk around the territory. The name “pheasant” comes from the Phasis River in Georgia, where the ancient Greeks, who founded a colony, once discovered this species of bird. Despite their southern origin, pheasants feel great in central Russia, staying in open enclosures all year round. Accordingly, poultry houses are easy to organize in a country house or on a personal plot.
Pheasant breeds beneficial for business
Externally, pheasants are very similar to chickens, the difference is the presence of a long multi-colored tail and bright plumage, depending on the breed. There are about 30 breeds of pheasants, among which the golden, silver, and royal pheasants are well suited for home breeding. Many of them were imported from China.
Golden pheasant
has very bright plumage (a combination of orange, golden, dark green, purple and other colors). The weight of the bird is approximately 1.2-1.4 kg, which determines its breeding mainly for decorative purposes. The length of the male reaches 1 m, the female is less. The tail is yellow-brown with a copper-violet tint, the legs and beak are yellow. Males are distinguished by a crest, back and rump of golden feathers. The bird's belly is red. Females have reddish-brown feathers and lack a crest. These individuals are very beautiful; they become decorations for private zoos, cafes and outdoor restaurants. The birds are quite aggressive and difficult to keep with other breeds. With their bright colors they can easily attract the attention of predators, so they must be kept with care. Egg production – 40-45 eggs.
Silver - This is a broad-tailed pheasant, which has a semi-wild disposition - it practically does not go to hand. It is larger in weight than the golden one, and is also bred for zoos, which does not exclude the possibility of producing tasty meat with a low fat content. The length of males with a tail is up to 1.2 m, females are much smaller. A characteristic feature of males is a black tuft, chin and throat, a gray or white body with black stripes, and the presence of a red “mask” on the head. The majority of females have an olive-brown body with stripes on the belly. The bird's beak is gray and its legs are red. They have very thick plumage, for this reason the breed is resistant to cold weather. Silver pheasants also have excellent immunity. Egg production – up to 40 eggs.
U king pheasant
There is shiny plumage with dark edges, which in appearance resembles a scaly one. The head is black with a white “cap”; a wide ring runs from the throat to the back of the head. The wings are light with a black border, the belly and lower part of the chest are black-brown. The tail has alternating black and silver-gray transverse stripes. Females are characterized by a brown color and chestnut-brown feathers. The bird's legs are lead-gray and its beak is light gray. The length of the male is about 2.1 m with tail, the female is smaller. This is the largest of all pheasant breeds and is bred mainly as valuable game and also for dietary meat. Royal pheasants are very sensitive to external conditions.
Prospects for a pheasant farming business
This type of business is good, running it is profitable for several reasons:
- High demand for pheasant products. You can get healthy, delicious meat, which is quite expensive, and high income will also come from selling poultry for hunting, selling eggs, feathers and droppings. A separate line of profit is bird breeding, sale for decorative purposes, organization of excursions to a pheasant farm. Currently, products obtained from pheasants come from abroad and are very expensive, so there are excellent prospects for the development of this area in Russia.
- Little competition in this segment. Breeding pheasants has not yet become so popular in our country, so you can easily find your own profitable niche.
- High cost of production. Despite the respectable prices, restaurants and motels are happy to purchase valuable pheasant meat, especially fresh and not frozen. Also, other areas of sales will bring high stable income.
For the basics of breeding pheasants at home, see the following video:
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Choice of direction and products
A business idea for breeding pheasants can have several directions implementations:
Regardless of the chosen direction of specialization of pheasant farming, additional income can be:
- Sale of pheasant eggs. Females produce up to 100 eggs per year, some of which are used to breed young animals, and the rest can be sold at a price of 50-80 rubles apiece. They are very healthy and nutritious, do not cause allergies, unlike chicken, so they can be safely given to small children. Typically, demand for pheasant eggs is high.
- Sales of pheasant feathers. Used to create jewelry, souvenirs, and accessories. They are actively purchased by artists and decorators.
- Sale of pheasant droppings. Pheasant waste can be used as an excellent fertilizer in vegetable gardens and greenhouses.
- Organizing excursions to a pheasant farm. A ticket to such an event costs from 500 rubles.
Absolutely for all types of income from pheasant farming products advertising will be required of these goods and services, negotiations with clients and customers, organizing informational conversations about the beneficial properties of the resulting meat, and excursions to the farm.
We decide on the sale of products
Available product sales pheasant farming in the following areas:
Sales of pheasant meat (carcasses). The main consumers will be restaurants, cafes, motels, and possibly specialized stores selling fresh meat. There is a chance to interest supermarkets too, at least we should try to implement this option.
Sale of live birds for hunting. Hunting farms, as well as individuals who practice pheasant hunting, are interested in this.
Sale of pheasant eggs, feathers and droppings. Such products can be available to almost all interested people.
A business for breeding pheasants at home, if it successfully operates and expands, needs to be registered or. You can register your enterprise depending on the scale, you just need to remember that clients traditionally have higher trust in legal entities. To organize a pheasant farm, you need some permitting documents, for example, a conclusion from the SES, veterinary certificates (the birds are periodically examined and vaccinated by a veterinarian). To sell live pheasants or their meat, you will also need appropriate permitting certificates.
Organization of a pheasant farm
The business of breeding pheasants at home does not require large investments. The main thing is to acquire land and equip enclosures. Sometimes a pheasant farm is a good addition to a chicken farm, etc. The best option for a beginner would be to raise small groups of pheasants for subsequent sale to hunters. After acquiring the necessary experience, you can move on to industrial cultivation and expand the area.
To set up a farm to keep pheasants, you will need:
- construction of enclosures;
- acquisition of cells and incubator;
- construction of a poultry house with feeders, drinkers, houses;
- purchasing eggs or young animals (it is better to take birds from different breeders and even from different regions for strong and healthy offspring);
- purchase of feed (for 1 individual, feed costs 300-500 rubles for the entire period of keeping);
- veterinary care of poultry (examination and vaccination).
Depending on the size, 2-3 people can handle all this work. To save money, you can prepare food yourself and hatch the chicks from the eggs using an incubator.
Buy a bird It’s better in the fall, when it’s cheaper, than in the spring, when demand is at its peak. Females are usually more valuable.
To organize a pheasant farm of 100 heads, you will need an area of approximately 300 square meters. m., which is divided into three main parts:
- aviary for families;
- aviary for group keeping of birds;
- nursery for chicks – size 15 sq. m.
Placed separately incubator for breeding young animals.
On the territory of the enclosures you can plant shrubs and small trees, place a lot of shelters, small huts made of branches, arrange a pond with clean running water - pheasants really love a comfortable environment. In addition, this will have a beneficial effect on the bird’s weight gain and growth.
Aviaries are fenced on the sides with a fine-grained metal mesh, and a nylon fishing net is stretched on top so that the birds do not fly away and predators do not get to them. If you plan to breed breeding pheasants and individuals for hunting, the height of the enclosure should be at least 10-12 m - the birds need to learn to fly. For breeding for meat, a height of 2-3 m above the ground is suitable. Pheasants for meat are often kept in cages. Birds sometimes like to pluck each other's feathers, so they will need special glasses and beak caps. In general, pheasants are characterized by a restless character, an aggressive attitude, and at the slightest danger they try to hide in cover.
Drinkers and feeders in the aviary must be well secured so that the birds do not knock them over. 2-3 perches are also constructed for overnight and resting at a height of 1-2 m from the ground. During the nesting period, pheasants must have access to material for making a nest: branches, hay, moss, feathers, which can be placed in a small hut on the territory of the enclosure. Sometimes small enclosures look like portable cylinders, which is very convenient for cleaning.
Rules of care and feeding
These beautiful exotic birds are surprisingly unpretentious in food and living conditions. Thus, birds are not afraid of low temperatures; they can be kept in the same enclosures both in winter and summer. But it is better to protect them from drafts.
Once a year, at the beginning of summer, pheasants undergo molting - a complete replacement of plumage, as a result of which the birds develop new beautiful feathers.
There are always more males in the pheasant population, so when it comes to obtaining meat or preparing birds for hunting, it is possible to keep even only males. However, they can only be in the same enclosure in winter and under the age of 1 year.
Pheasants eat little, unlike ducks and - up to 100 grams per day; their diet is similar to what chickens are fed, in particular, they use the same feed. A good diet promotes the active development and reproduction of birds. The time required for pheasants to gain marketable weight is approximately 5 months; accordingly, such production will be characterized by high profitability.
IN summer-autumn period Pheasants consume the following foods:
- greens (dandelions, plantain, young nettle);
- table waste (remains of porridge, cottage cheese, meat, vegetables, bread);
- grain mixture (corn, sunflower, millet), wheat and sprouted oats;
- legumes (adults only);
- fruits, berries;
- insects, snails, worms.
Preferred foods in winter-spring period:
- grain mixture (corn, millet, especially sunflower, rapeseed, other cereals);
- hay (clover, dandelion, forbs);
- fruits (rowan, including chokeberry, apples).
The diet of young animals is rich in vitamins; it includes boiled eggs, greens, and mealworms. Chicks are fed every 2 hours during the day and 1-2 times at night, and adults - 2 times a day.
In any season, birds can be fed with various types of feed, and also vitamin complexes, meat and bone meal, and sometimes antibiotics can be added to the diet for prevention.
Pheasants must be given coarse sand and fine gravel for grinding grain food, as well as crushed shell rock or limestone for shell formation and feather growth.
Water is supplied in stable drinking bowls, preferably cool. In winter, birds may even peck crushed ice.
Breeding rules
In the wild, pheasants live in monogamy, and in the semi-domesticated state, they live in polygamy. It is noteworthy that these birds are distinguished by their selectivity towards a partner, so sometimes even if all the conditions are present, the selected family does not mate. To breed, birds need to create conditions close to their natural habitat. The optimal composition of a pheasant family for successful breeding is: 1 male for 3 females. However, the number of females may vary slightly depending on the sexual activity of the male.
Nesting occurs at the end of winter - in the spring for 4 months. Nests are made on the ground. Females lay eggs once every 1-2 days, which must be immediately transferred to the incubator. The color of the eggs is brown-olive with a green pearlescent tint. During the season, a female pheasant is capable of laying approximately 50 eggs, but egg production can be increased by introducing special biological additives (biovit, biomitsin, etc.) into the diet of laying hens.
Incubation pheasants production is a technologically complex process. The eggs are placed in an incubator for about a month, after which the offspring hatch. In the first 2-3 weeks, pheasants are provided with special care and diet, and the most comfortable conditions. Their diet is high in protein. For up to 2 months, young animals consume special feed intended for broiler chickens, and are also kept in a separate enclosure. For the first 3-4 months, birds have no sexual differences. After a production cycle of 5 months, it is better to send large males for meat, and leave females for breeding.
Financial part
Initial capital: approximately 350 thousand rubles (including equipment and high-quality breeding material).
Main costs:
- Veterinary services (vaccination), farm registration, obtaining permits to sell meat – 50 thousand rubles.
- The salary of farm workers is 50 thousand rubles.
- The cost of maintaining 1 bird for the entire fattening period is 300-500 rubles.
Market price 1 pheasant carcass – 1500 rubles.
: up to 100 thousand rubles for one season (including the sale of meat, feathers and droppings, the sale of breeding birds and birds for hunting).
: from 6 to 12 months.
Business profitability is 40-50%.
