Peachick Mortality?

[Kedreeva]

So, I have read a lot of sites and heard a lot of people here say that peachicks are, for lack of a better word, fragile. Much more so than any other 'farm' bird I've raised, anyway. They have a high mortality rate between 0 and 8 weeks, I read. People won't sell them before X number of months so they don't die, I read. Feed them special this and special that, put special things in their water, etc. Protect them from drafts.

But I haven't actually seen anything that says -why-. Are they particularly prone to spontaneous death? Are their genetics so weak that they die off? Are they prone to spontaneous disease generation? Is there a very specific cause of death, a specific disease to be avoided that is more prone to killing peachicks than others? Does mother nature just hate them because they are beautiful?

Don't get me wrong, I follow the directions laid out by those who have come before me and know a lot better than I do, and my two seem fabulously healthy. But I've gotten curious.

 

[deerman]

IMO they are about the same as turkey poults. If raised like they are in the wild, peachicks will have a higher mortality. Nature way of controlling numbers, remember they live and breed for over 20 years. (thats 20 years to raise their replacements)

Blackhead and Cocci are two big killers also worms, and chicken can be carriers without harm to them.

Just watch a few thing, myself I think they are easy. Really not that hard, keep breeders wormed and health they produce strong peachicks. Eggs are harder to hatch.

I think most that lose them, make the same mistakes, not feeding medicated feed, mixing with other birds,and putting then on the ground to soon.

I find after 3 months most strong enought , to fight off most parasites. Still worm them 3 times a year.

So with just a few thing , a person should be able to raise 90% of chicks hatched. Free range peafowl be lucky to raise 50 %

 

[Kedreeva]

First of all, thank you!

Well, all of our little guys I am raising at my home indoors (chickens and ducks included, probably will not do turkey or geese, but would like pheasant next year). I have only ever hatched them from eggs, never had hatchlings or adults in the home. The ducks I kicked outdoors at like a week old and in this heat they did just fine... The chickens got booted at about 2 1/2-3 weeks. I have washed and sterilized everything between broodings and the adults/adolescents are kept at the farm, which is about 15 miles from my home. So there really shouldn't be anything disease wise here, unless it's transmissible through the egg OR can be picked up in the food.

I am curious about what 'on the ground' encompasses, as I have heard some use wire cage bottoms. I currently have them in a long rabbit cage (Guess maybe the size of a 100 gallon fish tank?) with a solid bottom. There's just the two of them, and a 'dwarf' duckling that needs special care, and their bedding (softwood shavings) gets changed every other day. Since it's a solid bottom, is this considered 'on the ground' even though they aren't touching actual ground?

The duckling was hatched here by me and is in good health (well, aside from genetically speaking, but thankfully genetics are not contagious). Is it ok for him to be in with them? They seem to really like him, even if he seems annoyed with them most days (they stand on his back and eat the food on his face and play zoom over the top of him when he's sleeping). Sometimes I think they would never eat if he didn't start to, so they remember where the food is.

They did not get pure medicated food, because I was afraid of the duckling eating too much of it and getting sick. They did get some, as I offered it to them mixed into a wet mash of egg yolk, oatmeal, yogurt, pedialyte and medicated starter. I also mixed it into their dry crumble- Chick/Duck starter, gamebird starter, and medicated started mixed together. I wasn't terribly worried, as I considered everything here 'clean' of parasites and disease, but the more I read about high mortality the more I wondered.

 

[laurencia98]

As a person who just lost all my peachicks, I can say that the first thing is to start with healthy birds. Mine all died of cocci about 48 hours after my getting them (which means the infestation had to come from the breeder). Know who your buying birds from, and yes, make sure they are at least 3 months old unless you are well versed in spotting bad birds early on ( or have a written health guarantee). They say experience is the best teacher, and although I'm heartbroken over the birds, I think I'm 10 times smarter about raising them after this. I guess I'm just still fuming over having to see them die like that. It's not just the money or whatever, its just having to watch something suffer and do everything you can for it to no avail.

On a brighter note, I MIGHT be getting a pair of 3 month old pieds. I'm still a little sad over my last experience, but I don't want it to put me off peafowl forever. I've got three great healthy yearlings, so I'll probably give them another try.

L.

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

I probably shouldn't say this because if I do all my pea chicks will probably be dead by this afternoon but I haven't lost any this year. I put 2 down due to spradle leg. Like Deerman said they are alot like turkey poults. Clean litter, good sanitation are major factors.

Steve

 

[Kedreeva]

Quote:
Don't let one bad experience ruin the next good one! I will hope for your new birds to come safely and healthy. The ones I have, I hatched myself, so almost anything that could go wrong has, thankfully, been under my control. Very little chance of anyone ruining them before they got to me.

And Steve... thanks

They're kept clean and in my room for now. Really want them to make it!

 

[laurencia98]

Thanks! I've never lost anything I've hatched myself to disease either. I did think about hatching peachicks last year, but thought buying chicks would take some of the risk out of it. Imagine that?

The guy who has the new chicks also has an adult pair he wants to sell, but I don't have my aviary fully constructed yet, so will probably have to wait on those.

L.

 

[Kedreeva]

Quote:
*chuckles* Isn't that the way of things.... you think you're taking a clever, safe shortcut but your original thought was the cleverest after all. I had bought an india blue 1yr old from a bird swap near my home ($20!)... then went in search of a female or even some chicks I could get to raise for company for him. Wouldn't you know, the choice was taken from me- in 3 swaps, not ONE female OR chick. My only option was to wait three months for the swap I'm attending next month or hatch some myself. I get the eggs into the bator and the silly bird runs off into the wheat/corn/bean fields that are being harvested around the farm!