Show me your peafowl shelter?? Pics please?!

[arlee453]

My dh has decided we need peafowl. I am never one to say 'no' to any critter, and ESPECIALLY when my hubby is interested in something poultry related! He's finally decided we'll take a pair of peafowl from a friend of his who is a breeder. These guys are about 2-3 yrs old, so they will be sexually mature soon!

We'll be sectioning off a part of our kennel run for them (we are down to just 4 very geriatric dogs out there in about a 1/2 acre fenced area) it will be approx 15 x 30 or so, so at the very least over 450 sq ft total. I'm going to cover the run with PVC and netting to keep them in the pen.

I will need to build them some sort of shelter for roosting and to keep their feeder and water dry. These guys are used to living outdoors and are a cold-hearty variety so I'm not too worried about making it extremely 'tight' (or should I be??) but do want it to be adequate.

Here's what I was sort of thinking....a 2x4 frame, closed in on 3 sides with greenhouse type corrugated roofing for the sides and top. Would 4' x 4' by 8' high in front, sloping to 6' high in back be large enough for just one pair if they were only and using it for shelter out of the rain & roosting?

Does anyone have a sample pic they can post of their small peafowl shelter? Would the shelter I'm describing be appropriate and adequate?? Should the feeder be a hanging chicken type feeder, or a bin type or does it matter?

How predator proof do I need to make it? I was thinking of leaving the front just open with a rain guard across the top portion, or should I make a door so I can close them in at night?

This guy says we can just let them go after 4 wks or so and they'll stay around. I'm not comfortable just letting them go because I don't want them bothering the neigbors, so I want to make sure their run is large enough for them and they have decent shelter...

 

[MandyH]

I don't have pics, but ours are in a coop we built that has a metal roof on it, the bottom comes up about 3 feet that's made of wood, and then there's about 3 feet of 2x4 wire to the top to the roof. They will just hang around, but they go all over wherever they want. They are extremely loud too. They scream all day long at whatever. You can hear them a long way away.

 

[Kev]

The run area sounds allright for a pair. I'm not really easily picturing your idea for the shelter. Kind of sounds rather small considering the male's tail by itself reaches 5-6 feet so if he is forced to roost with his tail rubbing against the shelter wall, or has to drag it against the wall while turning around on the roost it can get ruined.

The three sides plus top being solid is a very good idea. This will be adequate protection against night time predators- they can't reach through the wire to grab the birds.. which is a risk if the perch is up against chain link wire, this should not be a problem if the only perch is in the shelter area. As for roof material, if it snows in your area better check if that material can hold a snow load or not. Also of concern is if the shelter is going to be in full sun during summer time, that material may not keep the shelter cool enough if it is not very opaque. The height is good, peafowl love to roost as high as possible(my free ranges are roosting 30' up in a pine tree) so they will love a perch 6 to 7' high. You don't want the perch too close to the roof that the birds rub their heads on the roof either.

If it were me, I would make the shelter as large as possible, even for just a pair.. they are big birds that really like their room. Making the shelter the same or close to width of their run & maybe 6' or more from edge of run would be "excellent". You also mention breeding, if you expect the hen to set and raise the babies also, this is an consideration to take in account as for the space & shelter. That shelter plan does sound a bit snug for a pair plus 2-4 young birds, especially if he does not want the babies to be sleeping right next to him.

If the hen decides to lay in the run part, she will be at risk of predators grabbing at her through the fence, either putting up hardware cloth or solid barrier along the bottom perimeter will help with this, or if the dogs are still in the adjoining part, be a good idea to screen that off in case the birds stick their heads through and get grabbed by the dogs.

If you have a lot of digging predators or free roaming dogs, be a good idea to put anti-digging barrier around the perimeter even along the shelter part. Common ones are one inch chicken wire attached to the wall/fence then either buried shallowly with the wire going outwards from the fence.. or simply laying it flat on ground and let grass or weeds grow through it.. this will anchor the wire down very firmly.

It doesn't matter much to the birds what the feed container is. I use 8 qt buckets for mine(each pen generally has one male & 3-4 females), they use those with no problem. You can use hanging feeders.. I have seen pictures of peafowl pens with hanging feeders.

To be honest, I cringed at the part about keeping them confined for 4 weeks then letting them loose. I strongly advise keeping them confined for much longer than that.. especially you're getting either 2 or 3 year olds. 3-6 months is much better and still no guarantee they will stay around. They are not like chickens which you practically can just toss over the fence and they will stay, no matter what.. 1/2 acre is a bit too small, peafowl typically like to wander over 1-3 acres in size(and many range ever farther). Keeping them confined all the time is a good plan of yours- most of mine are confined all the time, both because my yard is only one acre in size and to keep the colors and bloodlines apart for breeding.

Good luck and congrats on upcoming new birds.

I live in a mild climate(southern Calif.) so I am able to get away with a simple open sided pen with a combination of sheet metal & shade cloth for the top.

 

[arlee453]

Thanks for the input! Looks like maybe an 8x8x8 would be a better size, and I agree that letting them roam is a bad idea. I want to keep my neighbors reasonably happy...

 

[Kev]

Welcome & yes that will be better size. What color are they going to be? I've got several colors- opal, white, silver pied, purple, bronze spaldings and greens. Love them all.