Introducing Mr and Mrs Peabody

[flightoffancy]

Hi, i posted this in the peafowl section, but there does not seem to be alot of daily activity so i thought i might get to be able to interact with people better here.

I have kept various heavy breed chickens, meat chickens, and also pekin ducks. I always wanted to add peafowls to my setup but i could not afford them. I found a local breeder with very reasonable prices. My husband got me a 7 or 8 month old peacock and peahen. I decided to break my own farm rule and give them names (hard to eat something you have named LOL).

I was told by the previous owner/breeder that they are pure indian blue peafowl. He also had several other variaties in the same enclosure and said he seperated them during mating season. I dont know if you can tell by immature feather colors if this is true or not. Just curious if mr and mrs peabody look like other peoples indian blues or not. Comments welcome.

Also, how many eggs will peahens lay compared to chickens ? How big are the eggs ? Thanks

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[flightoffancy]

Can anybody recommend a good active forum where peacocks might be discussed ? Thanks, i had thought this might be a good site for peacocks since there was a peafowl section but upon closer inspection, maybe its not what i was looking for.

[greg rountree]

Nice looking young pair of p-fowl---you definately have a male and female. I let mine run--they sleep in trees at night except in the coldest of weather and then they go in the barn.Most of the time the hens will not lay untill they are 2 years old; I have had Pea's for over 20 years and only once have had a hen that laid as a yearling. They usually lay between 5-9 eggs in a clutch and if not allowed to sit and hatch out they will keep trying up to 3 clutches a year. The eggs are almost as big as goose eggs--I really like having them on the place --they are really good at spotting Hawks and sounding the alarm long before the predators get within stricking range--all of my chickens know to run for cover when the alarm is called. They can get fairly gentle--but don't expect to pick them up like a pet hen or anything that completely trust you. Good luck with them.--I have found the Peafowl forum to have a lot more going on in it during the spring and summer.---Greg 8)

[flightoffancy]

Thanks for the information. This is my first pair of peafowl. I always wanted some but they were so expensive , this pair I got from a backyard breeder for 25 dollars each. I just was not sure if the male was pure because of the white on its breast, but one or two pics of males under a year showed the same white feathering so i feel better now. I suppose he will fill in with color this summer maybe (the solid blue head and neck area etc.. ).