Hatching pheasants is a chancy business. Not only are you never sure how many will actually hatch, you also cannot count on them to hatch when there are children around to see them. One year, all the pheasants hatched outside of school hours and I had some very unhappy children on my hands.
Fortunately, that was not the case this year. The baby pheasants fully cooperated. The children were able to witness twelve of the eggs hatching within a three hour period.
Then, when the pheasants had dried, they all got a chance to hold and love the babies a couple of times before Mr. Dodds whisked them away to the baby pheasant farm.
It was an exciting time-so exciting that I didn't take any video! Instead, here is a video I made of the hatch last year. This year's class love to watch it over and over.