Galliformes of the world

[boneaddict]

As for playing with genetics.   That wasn’t my thing except for striving to breed unrelated birds, or to sell birds that weren’t related.  Some of the breeds this was particularly hard because of the sample size of imported birds.   Tragopans come to mind.      Many back yard hobbyists sold mated pairs of siblings.    I kept multiple pens of unrelated breeding pairs and kept painstaking records of eggs collected hatched etc.  I had a very good reputation.     What genetics I did work on was the mutated black pheasant.   I was striving for the perfect color trait.   I believe the Spectrum Ranch was the other facility doing this as well.   There were some gorgeous black pheasants flying around the Wenas for awhile.

[KFhunter]

Your recommendation for starter birds?

Easy, and natural propagation with high survival rates, given some effort in habitat.

[boneaddict]

I wasn’t doing the hunting aspect, but easy birds that aren’t very expense, have good survivability, won’t break the bank and are easy to keep , I’d start with Red Goldens, Yellow Goldens, Amherst, Silver, or Reeves.   Silver and Reeves I’d suspect would be huntable birds. 

[KFhunter]

Be fun to do an "easter egg hunt", bunches of ringnecks then a golden pops up lol

[boneaddict]

Natural propagation is fairly difficult with these guys.   Quite frankly they are dumb as hell.   They’d drown in a flooded elk track.   Generally at the end of every season, I let the gals sit on and hatch some of their own, so they wouldn’t “go nuts”.  Silvers did the best in raising their own.  Banty chickens or Cochins also did a good job of hatching out pheasant chicks and raising them. 

[boneaddict]

Be fun to do an "easter egg hunt", bunches of ringnecks then a golden pops up lol

A couple times a day, for my kids.   They did an amazing job, labeling, keeping records etc.  plus they could get into tight spots I couldn’t

[LDennis24]

Natural propagation is fairly difficult with these guys.   Quite frankly they are dumb as hell.   They’d drown in a flooded elk track.   Generally at the end of every season, I let the gals sit on and hatch some of their own, so they wouldn’t “go nuts”.  Silvers did the best in raising their own.  Banty chickens or Cochins also did a good job of hatching out pheasant chicks and raising them.

I have guinea keys that free range year round on our place to eat ticks. They are amazing at being self sufficient. Dumb as hell with babies and raising broods. They will hatch out a batch of 15 chicks and lead them to the spring water and drown them all in the first two days. Then they will trample the babies in a panic trying to keep a cat away! I'm always forced to take them away and put them in a brooder box under a light. I'm gonna upset some people for not letting things be when I came across an unattended nest but when I was younger we had cochins and the neighbor and I would hatch out everything we found and some we ordered etc. One day on the way to school we went by a flooded field that had a long finger mound that went out into the middle of it from digging out the drainage ditch. The field was full all spring and a Canada goose had made a nest out on that finger. Well at some point the night before something found that goose on the nest and plucked it clean. We went out to the nest and it had two good eggs left untouched so we grabbed them and ran them home to the super broody red cochin the neighbor had. She could barely cover those two eggs but she got it done and we ended up with two Canada goslings. We ran to Aslin Finch and picked up an African goose baby that was slightly older and he helped them figure things out from the start and was the big brother. Sadly they got to flying and he couldn't fly so he would lose his mind and run after them across the meadow screaming his fool head off. They ended up leaving for the winter on their own and the next year only one returned with a wild mate. The year after that we never saw them again. The African was lonely so we gave it to someone who already had some and he fell in love with a mate they had for him. We raised alot of California quail and domestic duck varieties, bobwhites as well. I even had fighting cocks at one time and would get the gamecock magazine that sold fighting gaffs and knives in it. I came across some grouse chicks in the woods one time outside Cheney. Thought they were regular chicken babies wandering the trail until I went to catch one and a mother grouse came right up into my face! She strutted around just like a mad mother hen chicken would do and threw out her wings and punked me until I walked the other way. I thought about taking some to start a grouse pen but it would have been highly unethical and my conscience told me to leave her and the chicks alone. We raised regular old hunting varieties of pheasant as well. I love the black mutant strains. Had a pair that lived in my brothers yard at Rock Lake until they must have strayed too close to the road and some "hunters" picked them off. I live five minutes from Revere and the Escure Ranch and have to deal with folks shooting birds from the road every season so I don't allow hunting birds on my place because it's the only sanctuary for them and they have to nest somewhere. I would love to be able to raise prairie chickens or sharptails or sage grouse and release them here with success. Maybe one day I will. Hey Bone, do you know anyone who will sell me eggs from some if these less common varieties or even chicks? Tragopans maybe?

[LDennis24]

Black mutants from MTM pheasants

[Birdguy]

LDennis, I know several people who raise tragopans and I have never seen an egg for sale from a reputable breeder. EBay  may have someone after the $$ to sell them but never seen it. If you decide you want young ones let me know. They are not cheap but decent ones can be found. Our WDFW will not allow the raising of any grouse  but I  know a few guys out of state who raise prairie chickens and some other grouse.

KF, chukar maybe a better option for you smaller fun hunts, there are a few different colors and such (for your easter egg hunt) that would be easier to raise in the country your in. Smaller pens, could be off the ground to minimize the  snow impact. We have always found them quite easy to raise, just as a thought. And they are good eating! But there are many colors of ringneck too.

[LDennis24]

Any Cabot's by chance?

[Birdguy]

I know a couple guy raising them, no eggs yet that I know of so no idea how this year will go. Think they are about $1200ish a pair. If you are serious and can do some looking to see what wait lists look like.

[LDennis24]

Yeah I've read alot about them having a small gene pool so you stand a good chance of getting sterile birds. I'm not looking for them this year but possibly in 2022 so I would like to do my homework before then.

[boneaddict]

I’ve never heard of MTM pheasants, but those are likely Spectrum Ranch birds or mine.   Nice color.

I only sold a couple Tragopan eggs.   They went for about 300 if I recall.  Pretty risky unless you are well versed at hatching.   I don’t have any contacts anymore in the business besides Birdguy. 

[boneaddict]

This was one of my rejects, enjoying life out in the wild...

[boneaddict]

This was a fun Chukar KF