How to raise Golden Pheasants? A detailed explanation of the key points of breeding technology
The Golden Pheasant, also known as the Golden Chicken, is a rare ornamental bird famous throughout the world, and captive breeding has gradually begun in China. The meat of the Golden Pheasant is very tender and delicious, and it has effects such as warming the middle and tonifying deficiency, benefiting the liver and harmonizing the blood, and its skin and feathers can also be sold as handicrafts. So how exactly should Golden Pheasants be raised? Below, the editor brings you the breeding technology for Golden Pheasants. Let's take a look!
1. Breeding cages and housing
The breeding cages and housing for Golden Pheasants should be determined according to the actual breeding situation. For large-scale breeding, double-row cages are generally used for rearing. The length of the cage housing should be at least 4-5 times its width, ensuring that the Golden Pheasants have sufficient space for activity. Each cage housing should have at least two areas: a rest room and an exercise yard. The rest room is mainly used for the Golden Pheasants to rest and to shelter from rain and wind, while the exercise yard is naturally the place for the Golden Pheasants to eat, drink and move about. The location of the cage housing should be kept relatively dry, with a clean and sufficient water source, providing a good growing environment for the Golden Pheasants.
2. Breeding and incubation
May to June each year is the breeding season for Golden Pheasants. During breeding, the age of the breeding male should be around two years. Select normally growing females around one year old; one male can be mated with 3 females. Then, when the female has laid about 6-8 eggs, she will incubate them on her own, and the incubation period is about 3 weeks. Domestic chickens may appropriately be allowed to incubate the eggs on their behalf, or an electric incubator may be used. Domestic chickens should not incubate more than 20 eggs. About one week after incubation begins, candling should be carried out to check for unfertilized eggs, and after two weeks the dead eggs should be picked out. When using an electric incubator, the temperature should be controlled at around 38 degrees and the humidity at around 68%; unsuitable temperature and humidity will have a certain effect on incubation.
3. Raising the chicks
After the chicks break out of their shells, an appropriate amount of bedding should be spread outside the brooding room, and when the pheasant chicks are placed into the brooding room, the brooding room must first be disinfected. The rearing utensils and the brooding room must all be thoroughly and completely treated, and care should be taken to raise machine-incubated chicks and hen-incubated pheasant chicks separately. The machine-incubated chicks should be raised using an artificial brooding box, with rice straw spread out and feeding troughs and drinking utensils prepared. Within 3 days, the temperature for the pheasant chicks should be controlled at around 32 degrees. From 3 days to one week, the temperature should be around 30 degrees, then gradually lowered over time, dropping to normal room temperature at around 3 weeks. The feed should also be controlled according to the age in days of the pheasant chicks, with the proportions well controlled, to meet their nutritional needs and promote normal growth.
4. Raising during the growing period
After two months, the feather color of the pheasants will gradually become similar to that of adult pheasants, only the body size is not yet that large. Their adaptability to weather changes and disease resistance will both improve noticeably, and at this time they should be placed in cage housing for rearing. The rearing density of Golden Pheasants must not be too high; each cage housing should not contain more than 3 birds. Prepare rearing utensils in the cage housing to ensure that every pheasant can eat and drink normally. Ordinary commercial chicken feed from the market is sufficient; appropriately reduce the amount of concentrated feed. After about one year, males and females should be raised separately, because by then they already have reproductive capacity.
Before breeding, everyone should note that the Golden Pheasant is a nationally protected animal. However, in order to promote the sustainable development of wild animals, as long as you have the permission of the local government and go through the procedures to obtain a license, you may breed them. But you must never raise them privately; without a license it is illegal, so everyone must find out in advance and obtain the license.