These Farm Families Pheasants

These Farm Familiew Farm Pheasants AG WORLD Ag World 4-6-18 "We started small 10 years ago and it grew away from us," states Darrel Forsgren of Pelican Rapids, Minn., who has hatched and sold some 52,000 pheasants this year, sending them to buyers throughout the upper midwest. Forsgren's operation - which includes wife Kathy and father Carl - is completely self-contained, from breeding of hens to the final packaging and marketing of adult birds. Birds are sold at all stages -as chicks to other growers and as live birds to sportsmen and wildlife preserves. Each season begins in April when one rooster for every nine hens is placed among Forsgren's 1600 bird breeding flock, located in a doubledecked barn. From April till mid-July eggs are collected daily and incubated in the Forsgrens' incubators Once birds start hatching, the several-hour a day job of transferring hatched chicks to brooding barns begins. "Many of the birds are sold as chicks or young birds out of the brooder houses," says Forsgren. The remaining birds go to barns on Forsgren's and neighboring farms, where in about 18 weeks they're finished to mature weights. That is, a dressed weight of 13/4 lbs. for hens and 2 lbs. for roosters, a size that isn't likely to change anytime soon. "We select average size birds for breeding rather than large ones. That's because hunters like light, fast-flying birds," says Forsgren. Pheasants are a relatively hardy bird and subject to few diseases. Forsgren says they eat much less than turkeys and chickens per pound - probably because of their wildness - but he has never been able to compute the conversion rate since his flocks are in continuous flux. Because they're good flyers, pheasants will find their way to rafters and other areas in the barn that are inaccessible to other domesticated birds. Like turkeys and chickens, though, pheasants are debeaked when held in confinement. The Forsgrens begin dressing finished birds in September and continue through October. A crew of a dozen or so manages to kill and clean around 100 birds per hour. Birds are packed in plastic bags, and stored in a large walk-in freezer. "We sell to restaurants as far as 200 miles away," says Forsgren. "We'll ship to anyone but the cost becomes prohibitive at too long a distance." Dressed hens sell for $3.25 apiece and roosters for $4.25. In contrast, chicks sell for 50 cents apiece shortly after hatch. "We probably make more profit on chicks," adds Forsgren. The birds' feathers are also marketable, to a limited extent, to artists and others, making use of the brilliant adult-bird colors. But the main source of pheasant income is from the sale of dressed birds to restaurants, sportsmen and individuals. "Many people prefer them over wild birds. The flavor is milder and there's no buckshot to chew on," he adds. Even though his pheasant operation has grown into a full-time occupation, Forsgren continues to experiment. Three peacocks strutting about the yard make a visitor wonder what the market might be for them. Forsgren notes that they only had a trio of birds' when the family started "farming" pheasants 10 years ago. For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Darrell Forsgren, Pelican Rapids, Minn. 56572 (ph 218 863-8803).

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