Peafowl
Native to various parts of Asia, including India and Java, the peafowl are beautiful birds. Peafowl and the majestic
peacock come in two breeds available to the backyard poultry enthusiasts for raising. This gives backyard bird lovers an astounding
array of colors to choose from. The most common breeds of peafowl that people envision when they think of peafowl breeds is
the green peafowl and the Indian blue peafowl. The latter is the most popular type of peafowl, and the blue peacock
is the bird most commonly encountered in zoos.
The distinguishing characteristics of this well- known bird, are the
crest or aigrette on the top of the head, and the peculiar structure of the tail covert feathers. The true tail of the peacock
is short and hidden, and what we call the "tail" is, strictly speaking, an excessive development of the tail-coverts
or side feathers, which occasionally have been known to extend more than a yard and a half from their insertions.
Varities
of Peafowl: The colour of the ordinary peacock is too well known to need description. White and pied varieties are
also bred.
Feeding
Naturally, wild peafowl consume an omnivorous diet composed of both animals, insects and vegetation. Popular feed
items include ants, small rodents, seeds and small reptiles. When raised in captivity, domestic peafowl are often feed a commercial
bird and poultry feed while also feeding upon natural material while foraging and free ranging.
The typical peacock
or peahen is not too picky about what he or she consumes. Many poultry hobbyists who raise peafowl in their backyard feed
peacocks cracked grain such as oats and corn. Peafowl can also be fed bird seed, insects and other items found in a pasture
or green space. Peafowl are not a standard type of poultry such as a goose or chicken, and should be allowed access to natural
foraging material for optimum health.
The nutritional needs of your peafowl and what you feed peafowl varies according
to their purpose. If breeding peafowl, you should feed them a gamebird maintenance formulation available from your local feed
or farm supply store. Additionally, you may wish to supplement the peafowl feed with a high-protein, meat-based feed such
as cat food (dog food is typically plant-based). Scratch grain will also be enjoyed by your peafowl and can be fed liberally.
If raising peafowl from young chicks, feed the baby peafowl starter feed that is un-medicated. The starter peafowl
feed should have a protein percentage of approximately 30%. From 6 weeks of age forward, you may reduce the protein percentages
of the peacock feed to 19-20%. Once they reach a mature age, you may transition the peafowl to standard peacock and peahen
feed as discussed previously.
Guinea Fowl
Guineas fowl benefit the landscape by
eating a large number of pest insects and they will also consume deer ticks, which pose a serious
threat to humans by being vectors of Lyme disease. The birds will also attack and kill snakes, rats, mice and other rodents.
Their loud, raucous call will help keep predators away from chickens or other poultry birds. The birds require very little
care to flourish. They never become completely tame and tend to retain the wild characteristics of their ancestors. The birds
prefer to free range instead of being cooped up. If the birds must reside in a coop, ensure that each bird has 2 to 3 feet
of living space.
The birds come in a large range of colours, 21 different colours have been identified,
they fall into 3 groups, Fully Pearled, (small white dots all over), Partially Pearled, (white dots in some areas), and Solid
Colours, (no dots)
