First breeding season question

[lingle97]

I am getting a couple hens hatched in 2016. They are full grown now and about 9 months old. Will they lay this year? Also they will be with a 3 year old cock so should i expect any i do get to be hatchable?

 

[Arbor]

Chances are slim that they will lay this year. It is rare for a one year old hen to lay eggs.

 

[hhn2002]

2 years to reach full sexual maturity for peahens and 3 for cocks. I've read some hens born early one year can lay the next year.

 

[KsKingBee]

I am getting a couple hens hatched in 2016. They are full grown now and about 9 months old. Will they lay this year? Also they will be with a 3 year old cock so should i expect any i do get to be hatchable?

The short answer is 'no'. Very rarely will a yearling hen lay eggs, most will lay a clutch the second year and will be very iffy wether they are fertel. Hens start in ernest on the third year and will lay about 20 eggs if you take them away, if not she may decide to quit laying and start incubating after she lays about six eggs.

The same is true for the cocks as well, they are capible of breading their second year but like clumbsy teenagers are not quite adept to the finer tequniques and usually produce infertile eggs.

So 2016 hatch birds will start producing chicks in enerst in 2019 although a suprise could happen in 2018.

 

[barkerg]

The short answer is 'no'.  Very rarely will a yearling hen lay eggs, most will lay a clutch the second year and will be very iffy wether they are fertel.  Hens start in ernest on the third year and will lay about 20 eggs if you take them away, if not she may decide to quit laying and start incubating after she lays about six eggs.  

The same is true for the cocks as well, they are capible of breading their second year but like clumbsy teenagers are not quite adept to the finer tequniques and usually produce infertile eggs.

So 2016 hatch birds will start producing chicks in enerst in 2019 although a suprise could happen in 2018. 

Good answer,

.

Gerald Barker

 

[ChampionAlex]

The short answer is 'no'. Very rarely will a yearling hen lay eggs, most will lay a clutch the second year and will be very iffy wether they are fertel. Hens start in ernest on the third year and will lay about 20 eggs if you take them away, if not she may decide to quit laying and start incubating after she lays about six eggs.

The same is true for the cocks as well, they are capible of breading their second year but like clumbsy teenagers are not quite adept to the finer tequniques and usually produce infertile eggs.

So 2016 hatch birds will start producing chicks in enerst in 2019 although a suprise could happen in 2018.

Are peacocks way louder than roosters? I have been thinking about getting two but not sure how much louder they are compared to roosters I dont want to piss off the neighbors with louder screaming haha.

 

[barkerg]

Are peacocks way louder than roosters? I have been thinking about getting two but not sure how much louder they are compared to roosters I dont want to piss off the neighbors with louder screaming haha.

Alex,
Depending on how far away your nearest neighbor is, if you share a fence with them and are within shouting distance, the honest answer is that your neighbors might be unimpressed if you get a couple of India Blue roosters. IB males are at least 5x times as loud as a chicken rooster. Their breeding call is compared to a child or woman screaming at times. Im not trying to discourage you just giving facts. I would suggest that you brief your neighbors prior when concerning the noise level. If you are penning them, you will have to worry about the noise level, if free ranged, you will have more issues above and beyond the noise level and will need compassionate neighbors. Its only around the breeding months that they are so territorial and noisy ie... here in Central Texas the season runs from late Feb-Aug and varies every year by the weather trends. Please keep us posted on what you decide,

.

Gerald Barker

 

[hhn2002]

its really not loudness, of which their calls do carry quite far, two blocks if not more, its more about pitch. When people hear music they like, they crank it all the way up, if not they roll up their windows, and old timers cant understand why we listen to rock music. In general people find higher frequencies more irritating than lower frequencies. IMO although their calls are louder they're a relatively low pitch. if I were to put it on a scale of say 1-10 i'd say its a 4. I think thats why most owners tend to enjoy their calls and not just because they are biased, and even some that were raised up around them. check out youtube for some clips. Also mine ordinarily only call between sun up to sun down which are times you might expect people to be getting ready for work and school or at least they should be getting ready, not as bad as like the wee or prime fishing hours, because of that they they have less grounds for complaint and thus much less likely to do so. Case in point, I live on a one acre property with 10-15 peafowl and have had them for a little over a year surrounded on all sides in the middle of heavy suburbia, not one complaint.


*Edited by Staff

 

[Midnightman14]

Peacocks are also particularly good at making themselves louder than they appear. When my 3 males get going it's amazing how 3 can sound like 9 going all at once.

 

[Birdrain92]

Are peacocks way louder than roosters? I have been thinking about getting two but not sure how much louder they are compared to roosters I dont want to piss off the neighbors with louder screaming haha.

Loud yes, noisy depends on the situation. My rooster crows more often then 5 of my peafowl during breeding season. My peafowl are penned in at least pairs, so they always have a friend. The call most people are familiar with is actually a locating call. When free range, they tend to call more often because they are letting the others know, "I'm over hear." Roosters crow as more of a call of dominance, from what I've noticed.