Peachick growing up, questions...

[MinxFox]

So my peachick, being called Peep for now until we know the gender, is doing great! Peep is eating well and preening and flying a bunch. It also likes to perch on my shoulder...

Anyways at what age can they be let outside and when should I worm it and when can I start feeding it what I feed the adult birds? Ooh and when can I keep it with the adults? I might slowly introduce it then permanently keep it with the others but it will probably be a free-range peafowl.

It will be a while though before it can go outside I am sure, it is still small but getting bigger and faster and I take it out every day so it can run and fly around the house. It likes to jump up onto the tables and peck at the dog's feet.

 

[SunBaked]

Glad your little peep is doing good. I wish I could take mine outside but I have Bull Mastiffs and a heeler who see it as their duty (and are unfortunatly very good at it) to keep all manner of furred and feathered creatures out of the property. I have to keep my chicken and pea pens like Fort Knox so they don't get eaten.

I'm hoping somebody answers your questions. I'd also like to know when the little ones can go out with the rest. Also I have a question of my own. I put a chicken chick with my peachick because there was just 1. I figured the chicken would get it to eat but when I refill the food and water and give some to the peachick on my finger it goes crazy eating and acts like it's starving even though there's always food for it. Is it not eating with the chicken chick and do I need to show it to eat all the time? Probably a stupid question but it's my first one and I want to be sure it's eating enough.

 

[Lady Badlands]

When my first peahen hatched, Buddy, I took her outside that day. Put her down on the grass and started walking. She walked right along side of me. I had to be careful when a chicken came around and scoop my little Buddy back up. I have these neckerchief tubes called Bufs. I used to keep Buddy in my Buf around my neck and take her on walks with me with my dogs. We kept her with us during the day until she started pooping alot. After that I'd put a triple thick paper towel under her when she rode around in my neck scarf. When she was about a month old and was walking alongside of me, she started eating grasshoppers by the dozen. I couldn't believe such a tiny bird could be ingesting these huge bugs. She grew up to be the best bird friend you can imagine. Her name, Buddy, was perfect for her. She was our little Buddy. She always joined us whenever we were doing outside projects. She had an impish, mischievous, fun, curious, and playful personality.

As far as advice, I wouldn't be worming a peachick. What for? Do your other peafowl have worms? I would wait a couple of months to give it adult food. Keep it on chick grower (non-medicated). Be careful about leaving your little peachick with adult peafowl. They have been known to kill chicks.

Sunbaked, how old is your peachick? There should be no problem having it in with a chicken chick. I raised my peahen with a tiny duckling and another peahen. They all ate just fine (except the duck made horrible messes cuz it likes to mix water with its food, so the peahens were relegated to eating very wet feed. Actually, it never bothered them).

 

[SunBaked]

Thank you

I wasn't sure how the adults would be with them.
My peachick is a week old. He follows my fingers around biting at them until I show him the food then eats like he's starving but stops eating the second I take my hand away. Is that just a behavor/bonding thing? I was hoping he would be following the chicken and eating when he does

 

[MinxFox]

Quote:
My peafowl don't have worms or anything, I guess I want to know at what age you can keep a peachick outside. We would first keep the peachick in an elevated pen with a wire floor and then a regular ground pen next to the other peafowl pen so it could get used to them without living in the same pen. When can we move it outside to the elevated pen and then when could it go on the ground? When would you first worm it as a yearling maybe?