How long should I pen Peacocks before letting them range free? Also, weird that they don't make nois

[thesankeys]

1) I got 3 peafowl (2 peacocks and 1 peahen) in May and it is now August and they now come up to me and eat out of my hand. Do you think it would be okay to let them out now? Any other tricks to keep them close if I let them out?

2) I have NEVER heard any of them make a noise. is this normal? I thought they were supposed to be very loud? They are penned with some of our chickens. Just think it is odd that they don't make noise.....???

 

[LuvinBlueBirds]

I have also gotten some peacocks and have experienced the same thing. I would love to hear about how and when to allow my hens to roam.

 

[msmolly]

I have also gotten some peacocks and have experienced the same thing. I would love to hear about how and when to allow my hens to roam.

1) I got 3 peafowl (2 peacocks and 1 peahen) in May and it is now August and they now come up to me and eat out of my hand. Do you think it would be okay to let them out now? Any other tricks to keep them close if I let them out?

2) I have NEVER heard any of them make a noise. is this normal? I thought they were supposed to be very loud? They are penned with some of our chickens. Just think it is odd that they don't make noise.....???

Hi there. I love free ranging my peafowl, but there is the danger of them wandering off. This time of year, there is less chance since its not breeding season. But I strongly recommend banding them, and putting them on a very consistant " calling and treat-feeding" schedule. If you look up the thread under the Peafowl group- called," ID Bands for your peafowl" you'll see different ways to band them.
If you only have a few birds, it makes sense to get the brass plates from the tack shop. Also, there are several conversations about free ranging peafowl, but if you look under the thread "free range peafowl not eating, you'll see my method of feeding and calling at "coctail"hour, so they come home every night. Also, keeping good high perches available to them will keep them from seeking better or higher perching else where. These are just my suggestions, and there are alot smarter , more experienced people on this sight, so have fun and keep reading!

 

[new 2 pfowl]

How much space will they have?
Do you have roads nearby?
Grumpy neighbors?
Aggressive predators?

You have both probably already given this a lot of thought.
But just in case: are you sure that you are in a good free-ranging situation?
It would be a good idea to consider not only how to keep them nearby, but also the nature of the trouble they can get into in your area.

I am not trying to be negative, just cautious.

Ours free range and I've experienced various tragedies and heartbreaks that I recommend everyone avoid!

 

[msmolly]

Your question about noise- As they mature, there will be more noise,.....not to worry. The male will make more noise during breeding season, and even then it may not be much for a couple years. But it will increase with time. When/if you let them out, they will call to each other for location. If one of my birds is out of sight of the other, and its dusk (time to go in, or roost), they will really start screaming in order to locate each other before night fall. One time a hawk grabbed one of my chickens, and my Peacock, who was fairly young and not making much noise up till then- screamed for two days, trying to call her back! Your birds are normal, just young.

 

[LuvinBlueBirds]

Ok, now what.....I had my trio of peas penned up for a couple of months. Big windstorm came up and tore the roof tarp I had on the pen while I was asleep. Next morning, no peas. Searched for a couple of weeks, put an add in Craigslist. Found them a half mile away at a neighbors. Question is: how do I catch the buggers to get them home?

 

[Mehjr10]

Does the neighbor have a pen that they can go into. If you can catch one and put in a small dog kennel maybe the others will go in with and shut the gate. Worked for me once.

 

[LuvinBlueBirds]

I was wondering about baiting them somehow...