[Ann792]

Hi I’m new to smallholding, I have a broody bantam, my husband has bought 10 pheasant eggs which I have put under her, my questions are is she ok to hatch them? I have put her in a small coop and run inside the main run. Also if she successfully hatches them will she look after them ? We have woods around us so planning in letting them free, at what age can I do that?
Anything else I need to know ?
Thanks in advance

[macgro7]

She will have no problem hatching and looking after the pheasant chicks.
There are 2 potential problems:

• chickens can carry blackhead parasite/disease, to which they themselves are immune, but it can affect turkeys and pheasants
• pheasants will become very aggressive to each other

[Richmond]

Presume these are ordinary pheasants, not ornamental?

Game birds need much more protein than chickens, so ensure you feed dedicated game bird (or turkey) crumb/pellet.

Also be aware of a game bird's natural behaviour.  When alarmed their instinct is to scatter -chickens do the opposite - they flock. So if you intend to let mum and babies free range and something scares them the chicks will scatter to all four corners of the earth, resulting in a very stressed mother hen and most likely you as you wait for them to find their way back to mum. They will, eventually, but it may take some time and they will be at risk of predation. 

For all her good intentions a broody hen won't be able to instil the same sense of preservation that a mother pheasant would. Bear this in mind if your plan is to "release" them into the woods at some point. They may also find their way back home, attracted by sounds of the chickens they have grown up with, and may possibly bring some friends with them. I find pheasants seem to attract other pheasants and you may wake up one morning with rather more in the garden than you bargained for, especially if you are feeding chickens nearby. 

 

[landroverroy]

I once hatched some pheasant eggs under a broody hen. They eventually all died because the chicks did not respond to the hen's calls. As mentioned above, they would scatter at the slightest opportunity and not instinctively go back to her. I would find them dying of cold just outside the run they had, and with their mother clearly in sight.
So I would ensure that the chicks cannot get outside the run until they are well enough feathered to be able to survive, and old enough to know to go back for food and warmth.