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This is a picture of my San Diego Zoo strain Red Junglefowl stag. The excessive sickle feathers give away the domestic blood in his distant past.

Hello and Welcome to Castironranch

This website is meant to showcase the birds I am so proud of and give others the chance to admire the natural beauty in these wonderful birds.

I raise mainly Junglefowl but do keep a few types of pheasants on the side. I also keep around ten domestic hens that are used to brood the eggs of my exotic birds. I prefer to use game-type birds such as the Asil or the American Game because both breeds are very tenacious setters and the most vicious protectors of their young I have ever seen. I have seen my Asils chase hawks out of the yard that were after their chicks. These types of domestics are harder to keep than some of the more utility breeds but they make up for it by hatching multiple clutches of eggs in a row and being great mothers to their chicks.

So why Junglefowl?

You may be asking yourself "why do I want to read about Junglefowl? They're just chickens right?" You are exactly right!! They are just chickens. The same way a dog is just a wolf. All chickens looked like Junglefowl hundreds of generations ago. Chickens were artificially bred away from the wild-type Junglefowl to serve a purpose such as egg or meat production. But just because a Junglefowl doesn't lay as many eggs as a Leghorn or grow as fast as a Cornish doesn't mean they aren't worth saving. There is scientific evidence suggesting that perhaps the pure Red Junglefowl is extinct in the wild and the other four species are not far behind. We need to save what is left of these walking fossils before there are none left to save!

Do you raise Junglefowl any different than regular chickens?

There are some differences in domestics and Junglefowl but there are also similarities. The biggest difference is the space requirements. Domestic chickens require roughly 3 square feet per bird but I try to give my Junglefowl atleast 20 square feet with some breeders never going below 100 square feet per bird. It is all a matter of how much space you have and money for pens. Junglefowl need more greens in their diet with a game-bird feed as their main source of feed. I offer all my domestic chickens and Junglefowl mixed grains and greens stuff such as yard clippings. They especially like chopped spinach if I can get it cheap at the grocery store.

Something more to remember is with the exception of the Red Junglefowl they need extra protection from the elements because they are native to warmer climates than most people have in the states.

Don't be afraid to try them

The truth is that if you have time and patience you will be successful at raising these primordial birds. They take a little bit more space than some other poultry types but you will be helping preserve a walking link to the jungle. If you have never raised gamebirds then I suggest you start with the Red Junglefowl. The San Diego Zoo strain of Red Junglefowl would be the best choice for the beginner being that they are not as wild as some of the other strains of Red Junglefowl but are equally as pretty. Red Junglefowl are also the hardiest species of Junglefowl so they don't need any more protection from the elements than would a domestic type chicken.

Another pic of the above pictured stag while running the yard with a couple of Asils

Welcome to Castironranch!

Preserving Living Links to the Jungle