Heartbreaking losses...

[Romeacresfarm1]

This last cold snap reduced my Peayoungsters quite a bit. My losses include my 2 Opal hens, a Silver Pied and Purple Silver Pied cock, a black shoulder male, a white hen and then a Mink snuck in a rabbit hole into one of the pens and took the head off my Bronze hen. I now have no Opal, no Bronze and no Silver Pied males. All were lost during the nights when temps dipped below zero. I do however still have, IB, BS, Purple and Purple BS, a Silver Pied hen, white and a Cameo pied hen. My heart is broken. We thought they were pretty well protected and old enough for no heat but it was just too cold for my hatch from Florida eggs. I now have lamps in each of the pens as I did not lose any from the pen that still had a light heat source. All of these birds were over 6 months old.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Zero is just plain too cold for peas.
IMHO, at those temps, they need an artificial heat source more substantial than heat lamps. Plus, they need a dark period at night.
What state/climate are you in?

 

[Romeacresfarm1]

Michigan

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Since they originate from India and some pretty hot climates, Michigan is a special case that needs more substantial housing and supplemental heat.
I recommend seeking out someone that actually successfully raises peas in the northern tier of states.

These people are from TX.
http://www.bowspeafowlfarm.com/home.html

 

[casportpony]

@Romeacresfarm1 , sorry for your losses. Can you post some pictures of your aviary?

-Kathy

 

[Romeacresfarm1]

I have had Peas for about 7 yrs. They were in the barn in winter but lost a couple over the years to respiratory illnesses. Now they are in several buildings with areas that are open to outdoors but are still enclosed by hardware cloth.

 

[KsKingBee]

We just went through a nasty cold snap as well here in Kansas, it got down to -9 and didn't get over 2* or 3* for a couple of days and not above freezing for about ten days. We have about 90 2016 birds in a semi-open loafing type shed and lost no birds to the cold with no heat source. I would look for other reasons for your losses.

 

[KsKingBee]

Sultanen Peafowl is also up North as well. http://www.siltanenpeafowl.com/

 

[Midnightman14]

I agree unless you got these birds well after the weather up here started to get really cold temperature shock shouldn't have been a problem. Peafowl can handle alot more cold than people think as long as they are out of the wind and snow/rain. I'm in WI and all my birds just have a closed off coop to go into if it gets below 0. Supplemental heat should really only be a last resort because if you use it all winter it can make the birds more susceptible to frostbite and sickness since they aren't as hardened off to the temperature and the heated air makes bacterial diseases more easily transmitted. I live in WI and even during the years when it hit -15 or colder for days on end I never lost a bird to the cold. Something else is likely wrong here.

 

[Romeacresfarm1]

I appreciate the feed back. The only birds I lost were the ones I hatched from southern farms. I did not lose any of the ones from my own flock but the night that I lost the 2 Opals was a particularly nasty snow storm that blew into their pen. My hubby thought they were fine and didn't put a tarp over the front like I had thought he had. The Silver Pied and white hen died a couple of days later after they were moved to a more wind resistant pen but I think that night took it's toll and I should have put them in a heated area to dry them better. Then the Mink stole the head from my Bronze after they were moved. I still cry thinking about it. My beautiful Opal girls and my one and only Silver Pied boy that I bought several batches of eggs to get. I love my Peas too much I guess....