Ringneck Pheasants Started Laying Eggs... Now What?

[CluelessHomesteader]

We have 6 ringneck pheasants, 3 male, 3 female that we hatched late spring last year. One of the females just started laying eggs (yay!) and I think we'd like to save and incubate some, but I'm not educated enough. I'm in central Alberta so though we've had a warm week above 0, it drops below 0 at night and I imagine it'll still drop below -10 for some weeks to come. That being said on the mild days we are picking the eggs as soon as we see them (checking twice a day) so they don't freeze. The males have shown signs of mating (calls and aggressive behavior).
1. If pheasants are seasonal breeders, it seems a little early for this. Will they revert back to being "dormant" (I don't know what it's called lol).
2. How long can I store the eggs before they need to be incubated, and how do I store them prior to incubation?
3. Is there a way we can differentiate between a fertile egg and not, in a way that we could save it for eating instead of incubating (i.e. I don't want to eat it after incubating it for a few days, then putting a candle to it to find out it's unfertile).
4. Can I assume that if we separate the males/females, the females will continue to lay?

Thanks in advance

 

[007Sean]

We have 6 ringneck pheasants, 3 male, 3 female that we hatched late spring last year. One of the females just started laying eggs (yay!) and I think we'd like to save and incubate some, but I'm not educated enough. I'm in central Alberta so though we've had a warm week above 0, it drops below 0 at night and I imagine it'll still drop below -10 for some weeks to come. That being said on the mild days we are picking the eggs as soon as we see them (checking twice a day) so they don't freeze. The males have shown signs of mating (calls and aggressive behavior).
1. If pheasants are seasonal breeders, it seems a little early for this. Will they revert back to being "dormant" (I don't know what it's called lol).
2. How long can I store the eggs before they need to be incubated, and how do I store them prior to incubation?
3. Is there a way we can differentiate between a fertile egg and not, in a way that we could save it for eating instead of incubating (i.e. I don't want to eat it after incubating it for a few days, then putting a candle to it to find out it's unfertile).
4. Can I assume that if we separate the males/females, the females will continue to lay?

Thanks in advance

Question #1 yes it's early, no they will not stop until this year's cycle has come to completion. Sometimes they may take a break for a few days or week but will return to laying.

Question #2 7 to 10 days is the optimum time to store eggs, after day 10, they start becoming less viable exponentially.

Question #3 no, the only way to tell if it's fertilized or not is to open the egg and look for the bull's eye or to incubate and then candle the eggs to see if there is development.

Question #4 yes, the hens will continue to lay, you only need a male if you want to have offspring.

 

[CluelessHomesteader]

Question #1 yes it's early, no they will not stop until this year's cycle has come to completion. Sometimes they may take a break for a few days or week but will return to laying.

Question #2 7 to 10 days is the optimum time to store eggs, after day 10, they start becoming less viable exponentially.

Question #3 no, the only way to tell if it's fertilized or not is to open the egg and look for the bull's eye or to incubate and then candle the eggs to see if there is development.

Question #4 yes, the hens will continue to lay, you only need a male if you want to have offspring.

Thank you! I have an additional question, if I may. If we have a rooster in with our laying hens, can we still eat what I assume might be fertilized eggs, instead of trying to hatch them? I guess I'm wondering if we need to worry about separating our laying hens if we only want eggs for consumption.

 

[007Sean]

Thank you! I have an additional question, if I may. If we have a rooster in with our laying hens, can we still eat what I assume might be fertilized eggs, instead of trying to hatch them? I guess I'm wondering if we need to worry about separating our laying hens if we only want eggs for consumption.

Yes, you can still eat the eggs....some people don't like the idea of eating a fertilized egg but it won't hurt you or affect you in any way.