Game farming is the breeding and rearing of game birds and animals — pheasants, partridges, deer, and wild boar — for release into managed shooting estates. Chicks are hatched in incubators or by broody hens, reared in pens, and released as juveniles to mature in the wild before the shooting season; deer may be kept in parks for stalked shooting or venison production. The practice underpins a substantial rural economy of gamekeepers, beaters, and hospitality, but it is controversial: critics cite the mass release of non-native pheasants, medication of reared birds, lead shot contamination, and welfare concerns, while supporters point to habitat management funded by shooting. Farmed game sold as food must meet the same hygiene standards as other meat.