Surprise at Feeding Time

[MinxFox]

So I pulled up to the peafowl pen and was about to get out of the truck when I noticed one of my young peahens, Fiona, was out of the pen and she was pacing down the fence to get back in. So I opened one of the doors to let her in but my adult peahens blocked the entrance so Fiona couldn't get in with two peahens standing there not letting her in so Fiona walked around to the other door and I opened it and once again the peahens blocked her entrance, so I walked into the pen and left the door wide open but started clapping so all the peafowl stood around me wondering what was going on which gave Fiona a chance to walk into the pen without anyone blocking her so she walked right in. I found out how she got out. The netting around one of the roosts tore and the netting fell in that spot so she was probably on that roost and went through the hole. I tried free-ranging Fiona earlier this year with her sister Xena but they paced the pen to get back in. Even with a second chance at free-ranging Fiona just doesn't want to. I used to feel bad not free-ranging any of my peas but if they are going to pace the fence when they are outside of it and not pace it when they are in the pen then I guess they like being in a pen....

 

[zazouse]

All of my peas paced at first and they would go in and out or lay just inside the open door.
They need time to get use to things and to learn haw to get back to safety, kinda like when we go to a new place, it takes a while to learn our way around.

If you want them to range you have to leave the gate open and let them learn their way around, they will be fine, Just Breath and don't panic
It is also important to teach the peas to herd, you can teach them this by walking them around the pen, after they learn the you can walk them anywhere you want it just takes time.

 

[frenchblackcopper]

Minxfox,,I have wondered on several occasions here what would be the outcome if any or a group of my peas got out of their pens.Granted some are tamer around me than others but I have not made pets out of any of them.I feel if trying to tame them it may cause them to let their natural instincts down if they ever were to get loose or out of a pen.As with most animals there is a social arrangement in their livelyhood for better or worse.Some "beta" hens will never rise to the top of the pea hierarchy no matter who else is with them.These types of birds I fear would have a short lifespan if they got loose,they do desire to be within a group,yet are somewhat of the outcast while alpha birds seems to be more alert,and responsive to movement and percieved threats.I would never want to come home and find 10 of my peas loose in the yard,or roosting in the tops of trees.Once they became hungry there maybe a chance to entice them into their pens again but it's not for certain.
I've witnessed some of my Marans wander out of the pen at feedng time,they seem to only venture a few feet outside the gate and will voluntarily go back into the pens on their own with very little coaxing.But some of my peafowl would take to flight and who knows how far away they would go.Whatever the birds are accustomed to is what they must think is their way of life.Some birds may feel helpless-defenseless outside a fence? Maybe they feel somewhat protected behind a fence,rather than on the outside looking in.

 

[MinxFox]

I think part of the reason is she grew up in that pen. My peahen hatched her out in the pen and she has grown up there so to her it is home. Also I think she just wanted to be back with the group. Maybe I could try free-ranging her and her sister again this summer and I will just leve them out with the smaller pen closed off and the door open so they can go in there if they want.

That is a good point frenchblackcopper about not wanting to have a peafowl that is too tame because of instincts...I would be very worried if I were to free range Peep, although when he was a peachick and I would have him outside if he heard or saw a hawk he would run to the bushes and hide. His instincts were very good even with me raising him, but I would just be worried that if I drove off in the truck that he would follow me. Also I could see someone stealing him because he is so friendly someone could come in the yard and easily catch him if he was a free-ranger. Besides I am so attached to him I would never be able to let him free-range. I know of one breeder who free-ranges almost all of her peafowl but when breeding season comes she gathers up all of the peahens and some of the peacocks and she pens them so she can do selective breeding. She has so many peafowl I don't know how she does it...I think she can't always catch all of them up but I guess she does get most of them. That would be an interesting thing to try.

 

[AugeredIn]

The longer my peafowl and chickens get homed in a pen the more reluctant they are to roam. I can let any of them out and they will go back on their own. I was paranoid about escapees for a long time for no reason. I only worry about young peafowl now.

 

[MinxFox]

Haha yeah I was always worried about birds getting lose, but now it doesn't seem like such a big deal.

 

[Trefoil]

I wanted to let my weanlings out during the day and pen them at night for safety. Most of the people here warned me that they aren't like chickens and don't necessarily go back to their coop to roost at night. This proved to be the case and I had a hard time getting them back in until I saw the article on hopkins' site about free ranging and clipping wings. I hated to do it but it allows them to be out during the day and be herdable to the coop at night.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

I thank you all for posting this. It makes me feel better, although my peas are still not here at my home. My biggest fear if they get loose, once here, is a predator or even my own LGD that will not recognize them as what they should protect and not go after. I know it will take time so I hope I am building the pens safely enough.