Pea laying season?

[houndit]

What is their normal laying season like? I got my first egg weeks ago, but only a total of 8 since than from my 8 peahens. I am wondering if they are just not laying steady yet or if something is wrong health or feed wise. Also, what do you do about aggressive cocks? Please forgive my ignorance.
Thanks!

 

[zazouse]

How old are your hens?
Mine start laying at the end of April and are finished by the end of July , but most of mine lay a couple eggs at the age of one .
Do you have photos of your pretties to share? we love photos

 

[DylansMom]

What is their normal laying season like? I got my first egg weeks ago, but only a total of 8 since than from my 8 peahens. I am wondering if they are just not laying steady yet or if something is wrong health or feed wise. Also, what do you do about aggressive cocks? Please forgive my ignorance.
Thanks!

You probably had an "early bird" laying. Most years I have 1 girl start laying in mid April and the rest will start late April to early May. A hen will lay an egg every other day, sometimes every third day, until she has a clutch of approx. 5-12 eggs. If you collect them as they are layed she may continue to lay most of the season. One of my pied layed 31 eggs in a row during the 2012 season. They may also take a break and not lay for awhile then start again, it seems to depend on the hen. I would imagine your other hens will start soon and then you will be swamped with eggs.
As for cocks who are too aggressive(suffering from testosterone rage) we pull them and they are sent to their rooms alone! I have not found any way to curb the aggression and I will not take a chance on them killing one of the hens, because it can get that bad. I have a male in isolation right now, third year I've had to pull him, last year he was okay until later in the season, so I was able to get babies from him early on. Usually if you have plenty of hens for each male that helps, we are always short hens here. Good luck with him.

 

[houndit]

Thank you for your responses. When I bought them last June the owner told me they were all 2 or 3 years old. Unfortuneately I do not have any pictures to share at this time. They are all India Blue. As for the cock I should have been more specific. I have never seen him be aggressive with the girls. It is me he started attacking. He was the younger of two males. He never used to come near me. Now he tries to get me every day. Yesterday he tried to flog me. I grabbed him up carried him outside and lectured him good. I doubt it did much though.

 

[DylansMom]

Thank you for your responses. When I bought them last June the owner told me they were all 2 or 3 years old. Unfortuneately I do not have any pictures to share at this time. They are all India Blue. As for the cock I should have been more specific. I have never seen him be aggressive with the girls. It is me he started attacking. He was the younger of two males. He never used to come near me. Now he tries to get me every day. Yesterday he tried to flog me. I grabbed him up carried him outside and lectured him good. I doubt it did much though.

Sounds like an imprinted on humans situation. When a baby pea imprints on people he thinks people are the same as him, not something to be feared and competition for the affection of the lady peas. When he grows up he will often attack you as if you were a rival male who has entered his territory. You can try netting him a few times, they usually don't like being captured, if he grows to fear the net it could be as simple as carrying that with you when you enter. On the positive side this usually only occurs during the breeding season, once that is over and he sheds his tail and the testosterone abates he will go back to his normal not so aggressive self( until it starts all over next year).

 

[casportpony]

Sigh... One of my two imprinted males attacks me, the other humps my feet, lol.

-Kathy

 

[DylansMom]

Sigh... One of my two imprinted males attacks me, the other humps my feet, lol.

-Kathy

Kathy, I had a little black shouldered male years ago, he was hatched by his momma, not in an incubator, so he was not imprinted. I wear those stupid blue booty shoe covers when I go to the barn, so I don't have to change shoes all the time. This little guy had a thing for my feet, but only if I was wearing the blue booties. He would fan and dance and sidle his way up to a foot and then jump on it. It was hysterical until he hit about 8 months old, then I had to put a stop to it.

 

[Ellaluvsbirds]

I live in Ontario Canada and our peahens wont start laying until July

 

[SunBaked]

I had a rooster get aggressive and I turned the hose on him. Happened again and so I hosed him down again and that was the end of it. If my imprinted pea gets aggressive I will try the same thing. He has been fine so far though.