Peachicks and a Chick Thriving at My Farm

August 22, 2020

Peachicks and a Chick Thriving at My Farm

It’s always such a joy to see the animals at my farm growing and thriving.

One advantage of working from home is that I get to spend more time with my pets. I make it a point to visit all of them every single day. It's also nice to see the babies develop. Right now, I have seven peachicks and a baby Ayam Cemani chicken at the farm. They're all just weeks old - healthy, happy, and curious about everything.

Here are the latest photos, enjoy.

: I’ve been raising chickens for many years – not only do I love keeping them for their fresh, delicious eggs, but I also appreciate their company and their beauty. This is the yard where I house chickens, geese, turkeys, and Guinea hens.

: These youngsters – a peachick in front, and a chicken in back, recently moved down to a brooder in one of the coops.

: This chick is an Ayam Cemani. It is an uncommon and relatively modern breed of chicken from Indonesia. This breed has a dominant gene that causes hyperpigmentation, making it entirely black, including feathers, beak, and internal organs.

: The chick and peachick have become great friends. Here they are in one half of “Coop #1” – dubbed our “nursery”, where the youngest birds are kept until they are big enough to join the rest of their flocks.

: As soon as any chick hatches, each baby is introduced to the waterer and feeder, so they know where to eat and drink, especially when they are moved to new surroundings. This Ayam Cemani and the peachick have been in this enclosure about a week, so they know exactly where everything is.

: Because the young birds are kept near humans and human activity, they are very social and love when anyone stops to visit.

: This pair is also quite tough. They are already fluttering their wings and flying short distances around their protective.

: Here is an Ayam Cemani rooster with an adolescent turkey behind him. Ayam means “chicken” in Indonesian. Cemani refers to the village on the island of Java where this breed originated. The breed was first described by Dutch colonial settlers and imported to Europe in 1998 by poultry breeder Jan Steverink. The roosters weigh about five pounds full grown, while the hens are about a pound less.

: The hens lay a surprisingly abundant amount of eggs – and, the eggs are bright cream in color! Ayam Cemani chickens are cold and hot weather hardy, low maintenance, tame and easy to handle.

: Here is my Brinsea incubator sitting on my kitchen counter where all the eggs are hatched. Eggs are brought up and placed in the incubator the day they are laid. Here, they will be safe from other birds and closely monitored until they hatch. Chicken eggs take 21-days, and peachicks hatch within 27 and 30 days.

: After birds hatch, they are kept in my kitchen until they are a week or so old and then move down to my basement into a larger enclosure. I have six newly hatched peachicks down here now.

: They will soon be big enough to move down to the chicken coop to join the older peachick and the Ayam Cemani. For now, they are happy playing and perching on the various toys in the enclosure.

: Chickens and peafowl are not difficult to keep, but it does take time, commitment, and a good understanding of animal husbandry to do it well. These peachicks are adorable.

: This peachick is hoping for a treat, I am sure.

: My adult peafowl live in this coop not far from my stable. They all share a large yard that is enclosed to keep them safe.

: All peafowl enjoy roosting at higher levels. In the wild, this keeps them safe from predators at night. It is important that they have a variety of perches upon which to roost. Here, one can see the sharp, powerful metatarsal spurs on this peacock’s legs. Also known as ‘kicking thorns,’ these spurs are used for defense against predators. They also have three strong toes facing forward and one facing backward.

: Here is one of my peacocks roosting in a tree “planted” inside the “palais de paon” or “palace of peafowl”. As beautiful as peafowls are, they don’t make very melodious sounds. Peafowls have 11 different calls, with most of the vocalizing made by the peacocks, or males. And, with their sharp eyesight, peafowls are quick to see predators and call out alarms. Oftentimes, I can hear them all the way from my Winter House. This is a silver pied peacock with white feathers and blue and green markings.

: Peacocks and peahens are very smart, docile, and adaptable birds. They are also quite clever and very curious.

: Females are as big as males but lack the long, beautiful train. Because most of these peahens have grown up here, they are all very accustomed to the crew and always love visitors. This peahen came right over to see who was entering the enclosure.

: The males are so handsome, but now that breeding season is over, they no longer have their long tails – their tails will grow back in time for the next mating season.

: Occasionally, peafowls appear with white plumage. Most white birds have a genetic condition called leucism, which causes pigment cells to fail to migrate from the neural crest during development. Leucistic peachicks are born yellow and become fully white as they mature.

: Peafowls are very hardy birds, and even though they are native to warm climates, they do very well in cold weather as long as they have access to dry areas away from strong winds.