Barns

At MacFarlane Pheasant Farm, the arrival of each new season brings with it a fresh set of challenges and opportunities as we prepare our barns and pens for the incoming batches of pheasants. We're committed to keeping things safe, clean, and running smoothly. This post details our carefully crafted process [...]

  What does Milton Farm Manager, Lodewyk Davis, have to say about the success of the Milton Farm? He proudly attributes the success to excellent communication between himself and his four co-workers who are at the farm full time and his colleagues at the main farm. The Milton Farm crew [...]

We get asked about bedding for the birds in the brooder barn, as well as for the mature birds, before they go outside. For the brooder barn, where chicks stay for about three weeks, we recommend larger dried pine chips. We've found the chips are best, shavings are too small [...]

Water must be treated (cleaned) to prevent bacteria and algae from growing in the water lines. Both these organisms left untreated in the water lines can lead to clogged lines and sickly birds. We treat the water lines in MacFarlane Pheasants’ barns daily and flush the lines through the entire [...]

We have been using the PLS-2400 MR4 PTC Light Dimmers from Precision Lighting out of Arkansas since 2015. Before we got these dimmers in our barns, we used residential dimmers and dimmed our lights manually, for the most part. Our newer system does the job with greater ease and effectiveness. [...]

Beetles and bugs in the barns are not just yucky. They cause sanitary concerns, as well as affect the health of our birds. The Darkling Beetle, is a vector for salmonella, e-coli, Newcastle disease and other diseases and viruses. Flies are a big pain and are controlled with permethrin spray [...]

Our game birds are cool because they are beautiful and healthy!  But, in addition to being cool, we have to keep them cool. One of the ways we keep them comfortable is by using fans and intakes to move and refresh the stagnant air in our barns. This is one of the [...]

Is an alarm system needed on our pheasant farm? The answer is yes, if we want to sleep at night! Having consistent temperatures is crucial to the success of raising our chicks. The most important use of an alarm system is to detect temperatures that get outside of our desired range. [...]

Feed and water are the life source for our game birds. Our system for making sure our pheasants and other game birds stay healthy, by receiving proper hydration and nutrition, has 6 main procedures: We check feed and water systems daily, and each time we enter a room or pen [...]

We are constantly rotating birds out of barns, and chicks into those barns to then be transitioned to the outdoors. Everything has to be cleaned, washed, dried, disinfected and then sprayed down to prevent bacteria problems. Food pans, as well as food and water delivery systems, are cleaned; heating systems [...]

We get asked about bedding for the birds in the brooder barn, as well as for the mature birds, before they go outside. For the brooder barn, where chicks stay for about three weeks, we recommend larger dried pine chips. We've found the chips are best, shavings are too small [...]

Air movement in the barns plays an important role in keeping game birds healthy. When the temperature starts to change in the spring and the fall, we have to adjust so the birds can get acclimated enough to go outside without problems. Being able to do this involves getting the [...]

After the last bird is out of the barns, we have to clean. It’s important because it makes sure bacteria doesn’t spring up. Here’s how we do it. Once the barn is empty of birds, we take down the jet tube, which connects to the air circulation system. It can [...]

At MacFarlane Pheasants, we’ve become the largest pheasant producer in North America in part because of our innovation. All of the decisions we make in the care of our birds, from the smallest to the greatest, are because they result in a better, wilder bird. That includes the choices we [...]