Keeping Pheasants Occupied

[wannabe_keeper]

Well the pheasants have been in the release pen a few days. Just down here now checking them and they look okay to me but I know before long they will be getting bored and take any chance to escape!

 

Has anyone got any tips/ideas for keeping them interested and therefore in the pen as long as possible? I plan to straw the centre feed ride at the weekend and do some scatter feeding... What is best to loose fees? Sunflowers? Wild bird mix?

 

Are any green vegetables any good to keep them happy?

 

Other ideas?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Harry

[larp]

why are you waiting until the weekend to straw that should of been done before . if you can hand feed that will keep them scratching about have you got a pub or something were you can get bits of lettce to put in there

Edited June 25, 2013 by larp

[wannabe_keeper]

Well there was a lot of ground cover along the ride to start with so my intentions were to give them a week in there with no straw to settle it and decimate the ground cover which they have been doing well then add the straw.

 

I see it as adding new things in stages makes them new and keeps them interested whereas if all the goodies had been there at the start it soon get boring but I might be wrong. I've also hung some corn on the cobs up which they seem to enjoy pecking.

 

Yeah should be able to get some bits like that.

Thanks for the advice

[HotShot!]

try hanging tennis balls. Or something that moves for em to peck at. Do it on turkeys to prevent em back becking and getting bored. Never tried it before on pheasants....

[Beretta28g]

Scatter wheat IMHO.

[MattSoanes]

Defo get some wheat in the straw ,also Try hanging some cabbages around for them to have a go at.

Edited June 27, 2013 by MattSoanes

[955i]

Get em a copy of Danny the Champion of the World!!

 

Would keep them occupied for ages and is relative to them as well

[keeper23]

don't rush with the straw. like you say they will keep busy with the undergrowth so keep an eye on them and do the straw when they start looking around.

[Gamefarm]

At risk of being buried under an avalanche of opposition, I would be cautious with straw. Wet straw rides and warm days is optimum growing conditions for Aspergilosis, a fungal infection of the airways to which poults are prone to. Shoving their darling little beaks into a hotbed of fungal spores after a handful of wheat is not an ideal way forward in my book.

[webber]

At risk of being buried under an avalanche of opposition, I would be cautious with straw. Wet straw rides and warm days is optimum growing conditions for Aspergilosis, a fungal infection of the airways to which poults are prone to. Shoving their darling little beaks into a hotbed of fungal spores after a handful of wheat is not an ideal way forward in my book.

Agreed.

Also, I would ease off throwing wheat around until the birds are ready to feed on wheat, you could easily do more damage than good.

Try to get hold of lettuce, cabbage, cauliflowers, brocoli, hang them up or throw them around, the birds will spend gaes pecking at them an benefit from the extra food value.

Later on, apples, pears, plums, just collect windfalls.

 

webber

[MattSoanes]

His birds are ex layers.

[Gamefarm]

Aspergilosis is not fussy about the age of the lungs it lives in. Poult or Ex lay, either will do as a home

[MattSoanes]

Oh right, the way your post read it sounded like you thought he had poults. I must say ive never had it in any of my fully grown birds and their always fed on a straw ride.

[Gamefarm]

Adult birds are less susceptible, but equally are not usually confined in close proximity during the warmer wetter summer weather that encourages mould growths. Straw feed rides are more usual in colder months and where birds are free ranging.

 

I'm not saying dont use straw rides, just suggesting care is taken, maybe a rake-up and burn now and then? The birds will love the ash left from a fire, so double bonus - no mould and bird playground.

Edited June 27, 2013 by Gamefarm

[wannabe_keeper]

Thanks for the good advice regarding straw and the top suggestion about clearing it up every now and again to reduce this mould build up. I guess hay isn't any better? I heard barley straw dries out better and puffs up where's wheat straw just lays flat and holds the water... Is this the case. Will be off down the greengrocers at the weekend for surplus leafy greens too!!

[ollie]

We always hang cabbages around the pens, the birds have them devoured in no time.

[castletyne]

We always hang cabbages around the pens, the birds have them devoured in no time.

 

 

I do this also the birds love them

[keepersboy]

Hang up dead rabbits and wen the maggots start dropin out they will spend ages picking them off the ground also leafy greens

[Gilberts1989]

Hang up dead rabbits and wen the maggots start dropin out they will spend ages picking them off the ground also leafy greens

 

 

No no no no, don't do that. They did that 3 years ago in one of the pens on my shoot and nearly half the birds got wiped out by disease. It got in to the small brook that runs through the pen

 

I put a few stacks of cut logs to rot. They are full of grubs, wood lice and other bugs and the birds love to scratch around in them

[r1steele]

With regard to the straw issue and disease, the biggest problem is people using round bales and rolling them out onto the feed rides and leaving the birds to try and rake it. Less is better. Try getting small, square bales and actually take it off in small slices and scatter very sparingly and loosely so that it doesn't actually cover the ground but gives them a little something to do. If you hand feeding, a small handful of maize in amongst your wheat (once your birds are big enough) keeps them raking for hours looking for these golden nuggets and can help prevent wandering.

[scolopax]

Remember it is a release pen, not a pheasant prison camp, no harm in opening the gates after a couple of weeks and once they are going to roost (assuming that foxes in the area are under control).