Keep an eye on your chick’s body language to recognize the best temperature. When chicks are cold, they will huddle together. When they’re hot, they’ll try to get as far away from the heat source as possible. The best temperature will be when the chicks can move freely without exhibiting either of these behaviors.
Make sure that, if you are getting a male, the pen is wide and long enough for him to display his feathers fully when he struts. Not doing so will result in broken feathers or other injuries.
If you have a pest problem, consider placing a radio near the peacock’s pen. Keep it on at all times. Predators and pests are less likely to make themselves known if they hear human voices.
Week 1: 3 parts crumble to 1 part adult food. Week 2: 2. 5 parts crumble to 1 part adult food Week 3: 2 parts crumble to 1 part adult food Week 4:1. 5 parts crumble to 1 part adult food Week 5:1 part crumble to 1 part adult food Week 6: . 5 part crumble to 1 part adult food Week 7: All adult food.
Piperazine. This is a general wormer that comes in liquid or pill. The liquid can be put in the water and used to de-worm a bunch of younger birds at once. The pill must be force fed to the peacock. IVOMEC. IVOMEC is another very effective, general use wormer. However, it is not effective against capillaria worms. If you choose to use IVOMEC, it is recommended that you alternate between IVOMEC and Panacur (Panacur is especially effective against capillaria worms). Note that these two should never be given at the same time. Alternate which one you use each time you de-worm. Ivermectin Cattle wormer. This is commonly used to worm breeding stock. It can be hidden in a treat and given to the peacock or force fed.
Lice. These insects live their entire lives on the host, feeding on skin, scales, and feather debris. If lice are found on your birds, all birds in your flock should be treated with a safe pesticide. Mites. These bugs are more resistant to pesticides than lice. If you find mites, you must treat your birds every 10 days for 4 to 5 weeks. Then, it is recommended to treat your flock monthly until you are sure the mites have disappeared. Chiggers. Chiggers feed on thighs, breasts, wings, and the vent, resulting in red scabby patches on your birds. To treat, you must treat the entire pen/area inhabited by the bird.
Coccidiosis. This is generally just found in birds 3 to 12 weeks old. It is not contagious. The most prominent symptom is black, watery stool. To mitigate, treat with a coccidiostat or a sulfa drug added to the feed. It is a good idea to add preventative medication to your peafowls’ food while they are of a susceptible age. Histomoniasis. Chicks between 5 and 14 weeks old are most likely be affected by this. Symptoms include watery yellowish stools, drowsiness, and weakness. It is contagious. To treat, use Metronidazole or copper sulfate to treat. Leucocytozoonosis. This protozoan attacks the white blood cells of the bird. Symptoms include severe anemia, fever, weakness, loss of appetite, and difficulty walking. It is generally transmitted by black flies and biting midges, which both breed in fast-flowing streams. It is recommended to keep your birds indoors during the active season of these insects. If you do have a problem, treatment will call for a sulfa drug or clopidol. Pigeon Malaria. Here, it is the red blood cells of the bird that are attacked. Symptoms include weakness, loss of appetite, and eventually death. Like Leucocytozoonosis, Pigeon Malaria is transmitted by biting midges. To prevent this disease, be sure to keep insect levels under control and give your birds a low level of antimalarial medication of Clopidol if you are worried about them getting affected.
