Peafowl

[rhoda_bruce]

One of my local contacts have just messaged me with a question of did I want some peachicks. Apparently a man in a nearby parish has suffered cardiac arrest ( I assume he has been resusitated and is in the hospital), and all his poultry needs to move out fast.
Well, I have had them before and I kept them with my chickens. They'd freerange by day and I'd lock them up at night in the coop for safety. I no longer freerange anything and I have a no-nonsense farm. Everything feeds me, in some way or another. I'm trying to justify, if I should even consider getting a few of these chicks. Sure, they are pretty and perhaps I could sell off the babies, but so very loud and such good flying birds cooped up. The only thing would be, perhaps there is a market for the feathers. IDK.
Well, do any of you keep peafowl and if so why? What good are they to you? All mine were, in the past were some yard ornaments; and they would jump up on my brother-in-law's car and it would make him really mad. Okay.....ya'll thoughts please. Gotta go to work. Check ya'll tomorrow pm.

 

[moxies_chickennuggets]

We didn't raise any, but a juvenile male adopted us last summer for about 6 months. He was pretty, and well behaved, till he discovered the veggie gardens. My neighbor and I tried everything we could think of to discourage him from the gardens, but to no avail. I finally caught him and the neighbor called a man who had voiced interest in getting one. I learned that I don't really want a peacock.
At least you ahve had previous experience with them.

 

[sleuth]

The manure is great for the garden?? Perhaps that would justify it.
Another justification for me is they'll keep down the tick population, which is a plus for me since I have kids. If I didn't have dogs that would kill them, I'd free-range a bunch of birds on my farm.

 

[moxies_chickennuggets]

Ha, that's right. The little bugger did love to eat spiders. I had never heard of anything eating spiders, but saw him go after several and slurp them right up.

 

[~gd]

There is a market for the feathers , about 50 cents each wholesale for tail feathers. More or lessfor the quality and beauty.{do they molt tail feathers?)
We have a local breeder that sells them as yard birds. But the excape rate is so high that the Game people are asking turkey hunters to shoot them because they are pushing out the turkeys.

 

[Denim Deb]

There is a market for the feathers , about 50 cents each wholesale for tail feathers. More or lessfor the quality and beauty.{do they molt tail feathers?)
We have a local breeder that sells them as yard birds. But the excape rate is so high that the Game people are asking turkey hunters to shoot them because they are pushing out the turkeys.

Wonder what they'd taste like.

I know a few years ago, the neighbor of a friend had some. I was over at her house and if I hadn't known what I was hearing, I would have been calling 911. It sounded like someone was in the woods calling for help.

 

[sleuth]

Wonder what they'd taste like.

I imagine they taste like chicken.

 

[Denim Deb]

I did some research after posting that, and people do eat them. Some said they're more like chicken, others said they were more like turkey.

 

[sleuth]

I did some research after posting that, and people do eat them. Some said they're more like chicken, others said they were more like turkey.

Can't lose either way.

 

[rhoda_bruce]

Well, I have no problem eating anything. Only trouble with eating them, is I won't have as many feathers. I will discuss with DH. We are on our 'on time.' He'll freak out, me thinking on this. I don't recall seeing my peacocks fighting in the past. I also don't recall them fighting with the chickens. I can say different for the guineas. They harrass my chickens. Cool about the bug control, cuz the dogs don't treat the guineas very kindly.