Peafowl Newbie Doing Research Before Buying (Thanks in advance for any helpful advice)

[Chicken Keith]

Hi all,

I'll get straight to the point. I have no peafowl yet, but am very intrigued in getting pure, plain old "boring" India Blues. I think these are the prettiest birds anyway.

I am thinking I would like to buy a yearling trio. I've tried & failed at hatching eggs, and I've been warned that chicks are vulnerable to blackhead (yes, I have chickens).

But I have some questions:

1. Do peafowl and a garden go well together? Will I need to erect a barrier to keep the peafowl out of my garden, or else they'll destroy my veggies?

2. At what age do peahens begin to lay (sexually mature?) I thought that males aren't mature until 3 years, true? If so, then are pea hens the same way?

3. My goal is to let my peafowl roam free on my property (without being penned up). We do have predators in my area, skunks, racoons, foxes, possums and coyotes. My concern is for mothering peahens. Is there anything to do to keep predators away from a nesting female, outside a pen? (I had thought about keeping an FM radio outside playing talk radio hoping human voices might protect a mama? Thoughts?

Thanks, everyone.

 

[Rocky Hill]

My peafowl don't bother my garden.....much. at 2yrs they will breed although the male will not be as fertile as he will be at 3. i usually put 1 hen with a 2 yr old male where as a 3 plus yr old can take care of 3-4 hens. since they nest on the ground predators will be a problem, you could lose both your hen & eggs. you can always pen them during mating season & free range them the rest of the year. the predators get used to the radio is what i've found. i have 17 peafowl & love them. hope this helps.