6 w. cook's turkey, goose, and pheasant book. 



should always be rather longer than wide. No matter 

 how long the pen is, the pheasants keep walking up and 

 down from end to end. This will be more fully 

 explained in the chapter on pheasant runs. The question 

 is often asked, " How is it best to keep pheasants ? " 

 Do they do best divided into small pens, say one cock 

 and from four to seven hens, or let run altogether iri 

 one large pen of about fifty, so that they can have a 

 good range. Now, I have tried this experiment myself, 

 and have also seen many pheasant breeders do the same, 

 so 1 will give my experience. I do not find they lay 

 quite as many eggs in proportion where there is a large 

 number running together, but in the latter case they seem 

 to be happier, the eggs are more fertile as a rule, and 

 the young ones from the stock birds are strong and vigorous, 

 at any rate they are in most cases. 



Some years ago, pheasant breeders used to think three 

 or four hens was the largest number anyone should put 

 with one male bird. Experience teaches differently, for 

 the eggs are as fertile from a strong cock with seven 

 hens, in fact more so, than where there are only three 

 hens. 



I do not consider it safe to let one cock run with less 

 than four hens, especially if he is active, as he cuts the 

 hens about so much and the eggs are not so fertile. 

 This is easily accounted for by the fact that the hen 

 pheasant is afraid of him. 



In a few instances, I have met with cases where a 

 pheasant cock has died, and the owner has let two pens 

 run together and made one large pen. In several cases 



