Hi, I have a couple questions I'd like help with. I've got a single male peacock about 18 mos old. We bought 5 chicks (what are they called again?) last spring and unfortunately, 4 died, leaving us only one. (We did our best, took very good care of them. Have no idea what happened.) Anyway, we only got them for pets in the barnyard, no desire to breed neccesarily, just to be pretty. I've never owned peacocks before and know very little about them. Currently, this male seems very healthy.
So we only have the 1 male left. He is loose in our barnyard with about 5 chicken hens and about 25 ducks. He fights with the drakes all day long. He pecks at them, they peck at him. They are much smaller then he is but are tenacious little drakes and hold their own. They are certainly doing their share of picking fights. It seems they take turns starting it. None of them have been injured so far. As far as I can tell they are not actually hurting each other. When he's not fighting with the drakes, he's strutting for the ducks. He strutts with his tail up all around them, obviously trying to get their attention.
So here are my questions and I hope they don't sound dumb. Is this a normal life for a peacock? Is he happy? Or do you think he's frustrated and miserable because he doesn't have a mate? He is basically free range with a nice barn to roost in at night which he does. The barn has half walls and he comes and goes as he pleases. He has food daily and always fresh water. If we were to acquire a female, would the fighting with the drakes stop? Or would he fight even more thinking he has to protect her from them? My goal is to make sure all my animals are happy, healthy and get along with each other as much as possible. I had no plans to acquire a peahen. I have no need to have more then one and don't intend on raising them. But if getting him a girlfriend would help the situation or make his life better, I would do it. Or is it just fine that the poultry bicker so much with each other?
Thanks for your help.
So we only have the 1 male left. He is loose in our barnyard with about 5 chicken hens and about 25 ducks. He fights with the drakes all day long. He pecks at them, they peck at him. They are much smaller then he is but are tenacious little drakes and hold their own. They are certainly doing their share of picking fights. It seems they take turns starting it. None of them have been injured so far. As far as I can tell they are not actually hurting each other. When he's not fighting with the drakes, he's strutting for the ducks. He strutts with his tail up all around them, obviously trying to get their attention.
So here are my questions and I hope they don't sound dumb. Is this a normal life for a peacock? Is he happy? Or do you think he's frustrated and miserable because he doesn't have a mate? He is basically free range with a nice barn to roost in at night which he does. The barn has half walls and he comes and goes as he pleases. He has food daily and always fresh water. If we were to acquire a female, would the fighting with the drakes stop? Or would he fight even more thinking he has to protect her from them? My goal is to make sure all my animals are happy, healthy and get along with each other as much as possible. I had no plans to acquire a peahen. I have no need to have more then one and don't intend on raising them. But if getting him a girlfriend would help the situation or make his life better, I would do it. Or is it just fine that the poultry bicker so much with each other?
Thanks for your help.
