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Pheasant arrivals


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Now then gents,

 

When is everyone getting their poults? Had ours delivered today. We extended our pen and reinforced it with chicken wire pegged down into the ground as well as electric fence and radios and tunnel traps. Hoping to keep them in as long as poss so had wings clipped. One was outside the fence tonight out of 400 so don't think that's too bad. Couldn't walk him in though as he kept going around the Pop hole wire. How do you all keep them in?

 

Cheers

 

Henry

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We got ours on Monday morning, by Tuesday there was a pile of feathers outside the pen where something (probably a fox) had taken one. If you have an open top pen with pop holes, its pretty much impossible to keep them all in, you just have to keep walking them back in the evenings. Sounds like you might need to extend the wire that guides them back to the pop holes to stop them walking around it?

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We already extended them. Always seem to get the odd awkward one that won't walk where you want it to. I think the only other thing I can do for next year is extend the height of the perimeter with a line of chicken wire.

 

Do they not wander too far away out the area to walk them back in at the end of the day. We've set a rota up to walk them back in morning lunch and evening to get them to call that area 'home'. Like keeping chickens in an area for a couple of weeks means they'll always go back there to roost... Or so we hope for anyway

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Got ours last Wednesday, great weather so far lol!!!!

 

We have long angled guides at 45 degrees outside and inside then fence wire tunnels. Worked well so far but eventually they get smart.

Edited by markm
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Do they not wander too far away out the area to walk them back in at the end of the day. We've set a rota up to walk them back in morning lunch and evening to get them to call that area 'home'. Like keeping chickens in an area for a couple of weeks means they'll always go back there to roost... Or so we hope for anyway

 

Ours tend to hang around the area immediately outside the pen, so its not too much trouble to walk them back in, there were about 20 out this evening. As time goes on they wander further during the day, but usually come back to the pen to roost

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The wheat will probably be at least 4 weeks away from being cut, your birds will be a lot bigger by then. Last year the field next to one of our pens was wheat, I asked the combine driver to let me know just before they started and I walked through the wheat almost in front of the combine! This year the same field is grass and will be cut for silage any day now, which will give me a chance to catch up with the fox that has moved in

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End of August is quite late, when do you start shooting? Most of our birds are in a Forestry Commission wood, but we do shoot on the surrounding farm land

We only have 5 shoots mate so normally mid November then every 2 weeks after that. We normally get the birds late July early August but it can be a pain to hold them if we have a mild October which seems to be regular as of late.

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We start mid October, so we need our birds early July. Last October wasn't too bad for holding birds, but the year before was difficult mainly due to a massive crop of acorns.

 

Last year was our biggest nightmare, first year we'd had no ex-layers because we were told they 'wonder off' so stuck to poults only which duly travelled far and wide! There was a good crop of winter rape around the wood which didn't help our cause plus I remember feeding one night in October and I was soaked through with sweat, when I got back to the car it was still over 20 degrees!

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Last year was our biggest nightmare, first year we'd had no ex-layers because we were told they 'wonder off' so stuck to poults only which duly travelled far and wide!

:) Scary isn't it? All our birds have now disappeared into the deep lush cover that exists in the woods, hedgerows, long grass and winter wheat. They may still be here, they may not, and we have this every year, when suddenly all those birds we are used to seeing, simply disappear. It is such a relief when come the season come the birds. :yes: Edited to add: fingers crossed!

Edited by Scully
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It will be difficult to stop them wandering out of the wood, can you dog them back in from the surrounding fields?

 

Luckily my dad has been getting on with the neighbouring keeper, he has allowed us to dog back some fields which he doesn't shoot on which has helped. Main problem is we just simply never see a mass group of pheasants leak out in one go, I've spent hours walking around the boundaries pushing ones and twos back. We're under no illusions, we know having just the wood was going to be difficult hence why I'm hoping for snow in November! :lol:

 

:) Scary isn't it? All our birds have now disappeared into the deep lush cover that exists in the woods, hedgerows, long grass and winter wheat. They may still be here, they may not, and we have this every year, when suddenly all those birds we are used to seeing, simply disappear. It is such a relief when come the season come the birds. :yes: Edited to add: fingers crossed!

Very scary mate! We only managed a return of 30% last year, not enough really cold days to draw them back in great numbers. However new season new hope, a lot of new members who have dogs plus we've found somebody who has all the relevant paperwork (Foresty rules) to clear out some rides which in theory (!) should make a bit of difference.

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well guys thought I would join in our birds came on sat morning 450 in two open top pens half pop holes open sat evening I walked 7 or 8 bk in to each pen been again tonight one pen was well settled with no birds on the outside the other hd 8/9 on the outside 4 of which had ventured out in to the deep grass in the field above the pen so I took a wide birth out over the field and walked them bk dwn to the pen got 30 yards from the pen and found by first casualty followed by another 5 in a 40 yrd radius no signs of predation or illness im guessing they couldn't find there way bk in and succumb to lack of food water and heat so annoying but I suppose you have to loose a few plus was a good lesson for my 3 year old daughter to see that animals do die its natural plus she got her first driving lesson off-road and loved it beats any computer hands down

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Luckily my dad has been getting on with the neighbouring keeper, he has allowed us to dog back some fields which he doesn't shoot on which has helped. Main problem is we just simply never see a mass group of pheasants leak out in one go, I've spent hours walking around the boundaries pushing ones and twos back. We're under no illusions, we know having just the wood was going to be difficult hence why I'm hoping for snow in November! :lol:

 

 

Very scary mate! We only managed a return of 30% last year, not enough really cold days to draw them back in great numbers. However new season new hope, a lot of new members who have dogs plus we've found somebody who has all the relevant paperwork (Foresty rules) to clear out some rides which in theory (!) should make a bit of difference.

 

Sounds like you are up against it, having the keeper next door on side will help though! I don't think 30% is too bad in your situation, as long as everyone enjoys the days, the returns don't matter too much anyway

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Sounds like you are up against it, having the keeper next door on side will help though! I don't think 30% is too bad in your situation, as long as everyone enjoys the days, the returns don't matter too much anyway

Yeah everyone seems to enjoy it, our shoot only works out to about £60 for the day so if everybody gets a couple of birds a day I'm happy!

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