Jangle Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 We have an occasional visitor to our garden in the form of a beautiful male pheasant who has discovered that he can come and feast on layers mash. Sage and Onion think he's wonderful and follow him around the garden like a couple of lovestruck teenagers. He treats them with polite distain and ignores them as he struts around under the apple tree before eventually going back to the fields behind our house. All the other garden birds they chase away immediately, particularly pidgeons and magpies. I had no idea that they would be so territorial. Has anybody else noticed their hens interacting with garden birds? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Frugal Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 Hi Janet, Lovestruck hens! How sweet!! I posted a topic a while ago called Scarecrow Hens - http://club.omlet.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=121 about Clarissa chasing off other garden birds. We call it Stuka mode now. Several other Omletarians posted replies to say their hens also exhibit this strange territorial behaviour - so funny to watch I wish I had a visiting pheasant - I'm very jealous now although my little robin is gorgeous enough for me . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicola H Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 We also have a visiting male pheasant, the girls don't chase him but they just carry on as normal he eats their food then returns to the field. I see female pheasants in the field but as of yet none have visited the garden. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhona Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 ahhh that's sweet we have a pheasant that often visits the garden although he hasn't been since my three pooches decided to give him some excercise and chase him around the garden, he did eventually take off after a good run up. I was wondering how the hens would react and whether he would be a threat to them... Am a bit happier about him calling now I have read this Rhona Sage Onion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nicki Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 At the farm I keep my horse there are loads of pheasants. Usually seen in family groups but the males do come in the yard and eat the chicken corn.Although the cockerels argue from time to time I have never seen any bird bother about the pheasant or vice versa. I'm sure as they share te same territory there is no extra risk of disease either. We are thinking about keeping a couple in the big run when the girls move in there. It couldbe interesting if they decide to investigate the eglu! Nicki Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lesley Posted January 4, 2005 Share Posted January 4, 2005 We have a male pheasant who comes to visit but he can't get to the food so he paces up and down looking at it disconsolately. He does collect any which escapes when they start shovelling it around. We have also had a couple of visits from a sparrowhawk and the girls flatten themselves even though we have a roof netting. All the other garden birds they just seem to ignore. Lesley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted January 5, 2005 Share Posted January 5, 2005 Hi We ahve a pheasant (we call Phil) who frequents the garden next to ours; usually when they are shooting in the fields around. The girls strut up and down the wire fence betweent the gardens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motherhen Posted January 6, 2005 Share Posted January 6, 2005 No pheasants in Newcastle but I do have some good recipes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lesley Posted January 6, 2005 Share Posted January 6, 2005 Jane - you were down in Warwickshire the other day - you should have collected ours! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louise Posted January 6, 2005 Share Posted January 6, 2005 I have lots of Pheasants!! A whole flock I keep trying to get the cats to bring one home for the pot (sorry all you veggies) They escaped from a shoot on the other side of the river and live in the wood next to the garden and come in regularly looking for food and of course now all my leftover chook grub goes to them!! In fact one of my cats 'plays' with them they are not in the least bothered by him I guess they know if he gets too close they have good sharp beaks, claws and wings!! I haven't seen them around the girls yet but there is time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motherhen Posted January 6, 2005 Share Posted January 6, 2005 Hi Lesley Yes I did consider contacting you re 'popping in' but since I spent most of the time in the kitchen cooking wonderful meals for vast numbers of siblings and other relatives, I just didn't have the time. Well, to be perfectly honest I was out of the kitchen a bit but was usually horizontal in a chair with wine glass in hand! Anyway, I go down to see Dad as much as poss so I'm sure we can get together some time. It would be lovely to see your girls in person. If anyone gets brave and ventures into the northeast (amazing countryside) then do pm me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Imogen Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 Sadly, owning an English Springer Spaniel means that we do not have any pheasants in our garden, since whenever she sees one she immediately bounds over to it so it flies upwards and then she turns to look at us, with a face of disgust, as if to say 'Why on earth didn't you shoot it?' It's very rare to see a pheasent in our garden, and we havn't had any since the arrival of our girls in October. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fowlbird Posted January 19, 2007 Share Posted January 19, 2007 So all you people with the visiting pheasants, do you live in the 'proper' countryside? The reason I ask is that last summer OH found a male pheasant round the side of the garage - said bird was working his way round to the back where our girls were. We haven't seen any since but I'm wondering if pheasants in suburbia are more common than I thought and also if there's any chance a male might have lustful designs on our innocent chooks... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louise Posted January 19, 2007 Share Posted January 19, 2007 I am in the proper countryside I've just realised we haven't seen Imogen in AGES Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Looney Posted January 19, 2007 Share Posted January 19, 2007 We don't get pheasants in our garden. Doris and Gwen occasionally chase the starlings but usually tolerate them....they can't stand the pigeons though, they get chased straight away Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken Licken Posted January 19, 2007 Share Posted January 19, 2007 I have a visiting pheasant - he sits on the shed roof and looks for any grain the girls have missed. He seems to roost in the conifers the other side of the allotments (about 150m from my door). The girls were not too sure of him, but will not allow any other birds to land in the garden whilst they are free ranging - once they are in the run it is a free for all!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted January 19, 2007 Share Posted January 19, 2007 We don't get pheasants where I am. They are too busy playing chicken(!) on the roads out to Derbyshire. My sisters cat was once huffing and puffing, in her kitchen, trying to bring something in through the cat flap. When they opened the door to see what it was, they found a fully grown male pheasant in full plumage putting up quite a struggle on the other side! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PurpleHen Posted January 19, 2007 Share Posted January 19, 2007 I want a pheasant too .... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 19, 2007 Share Posted January 19, 2007 We wnet to view a house today, and as we toddled along in the car, lost on a 'B' road in the heart of the Scottish borders, we came across some particularly stupid pheasants who sat in the middle of the road and just watched us (as we slammed on the brakes) as we hurtled towards them. We came screeching to a stop, and they just stood, in front of the car, until chookiehubbie got out and chased them........ Stoooopid, stoooopid birds..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chocchick Posted January 19, 2007 Share Posted January 19, 2007 We get garden birds. Chip and Choc* the sparrows dive down into the pen occasionally and their friends used to take chicken feathers to line their nest. Abbie and Megan are still getting used to the slightly bigger garden birds and sometimes get scared and flutter across the garden. We once had a baby sparrow for a day or so in the corner of the chicken pen and Trinny just wandered over and gave it a strange look. *Chip turned up so much I named him, then I realised there were actually 2 sparrows Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
