How much does a peacock chick cost per bird? How do you raise them?

Peacocks belong to a category of specialty farming, and there are quite a few types, including the blue peacock, black peacock, spotted peacock, white peacock, green peacock, and others, with high ornamental and edible value. However, raising peacocks is not that simple; first of all, you need to buy peacock chicks of a suitable breed according to your own needs. So how much does a peacock chick cost per bird? How do you raise them?

1. How much does a peacock chick cost per bird?

The price of peacock chicks is about 70-100 yuan per bird, depending on the size, breed, and quantity. Usually, newly hatched chicks are about 80-100 yuan per bird, one-week-old chicks are about 100-120 yuan per bird, and one-month-old chicks are about 120-140 yuan per bird. Breeding peacocks are generally sold by group, usually about 1000-1200 yuan per bird, with a group (1 male and 4 females) costing about 5000-6000 yuan. Under normal conditions, a female peacock in good health can lay 30-40 eggs a year.

2. How do you raise peacock chicks?

1. Provide water and food in a timely manner

On the 1st day after hatching, the residual yolk in the body of the peacock chick can meet the body's needs, so artificial feeding is not necessary. To prevent dehydration, only a small amount of warm boiled water can be given. To disinfect the gastrointestinal tract and quickly replenish strength, 0.01% potassium permanganate can be added to the drinking water, or penicillin at a dose of 1000 units per peacock chick and a small amount of glucose can be added. Peacock chicks should be started on feed 24-36 h after hatching. For the first feeding, half-cooked millet or broken rice, crushed corn, and the like can be scattered on a plastic sheet for food-recognition training. In the following days, a small amount of chopped vegetable leaves and a certain amount of cooked egg yolk mashed into powder can be gradually added (feed 1 egg yolk per day for 10-15 peacock chicks), and the feeding frequency is 5-6 times per day.

2. Suitable temperature

At the beginning, the temperature inside the brooder is 34-38℃, and the temperature of the brooding room is 28-30°C. Under normal circumstances, the brooding temperature is 33-35°C at 1 week of age, 32-33°C at 2 weeks of age, and 28-31°C at 3 weeks of age, after which it is lowered by 1°C every 2-3 days. After 1 week, when the weather is clear, the peacock chicks can be placed outdoors for activity so that they slowly adapt to the external environment, climate, temperature, and so on. After 30 days of age, they can gradually be taken off heat, and artificial heating can be stopped. At the beginning, they can be taken off heat during the day while still being heated at night; when the temperature drops, appropriate auxiliary heating is also needed. Generally, before the end of brooding, it is suitable to keep the temperature no lower than 20℃.

3. Reasonable density

Reasonable rearing density can increase the appetite of young chicks, increase their amount of exercise, weaken the intensity of their response to abnormal stimuli in the rearing environment, and save pen space, rearing equipment, and labor, making production management convenient. However, if the rearing density is too high, it will cause wet litter, uneven feeding and drinking, uneven development of peacock chicks, and a marked increase in pecking vice and injuries. As the peacock chicks grow larger, the rearing density should gradually decrease. Generally, the rearing density at 1-3 weeks of age is 12-15 birds/㎡, and from 3 weeks to 60 days of age it is 5-8 birds/㎡.

4. Appropriate grouping

During brooding, due to differences in physique, quality, and sex among peacock chicks, it often happens that individual peacock chicks vary in size, strong birds snatch food, and weak birds do not get enough to eat, affecting balanced weight gain in the group. Therefore, male and female, and strong and weak chicks should be separated into groups in a timely manner to facilitate rearing management. Weak chicks should receive special care. If the group of young chicks is too large, it can cause uneven growth and development and produce bad habits. Therefore, the group of young peacock chicks should not be too large; generally, 20-30 birds per group is suitable, with a maximum of no more than 50 birds.

5. Strengthen ventilation and air exchange

Because peacock chicks have a vigorous metabolism, their respiration and excreted droppings produce a large amount of harmful gases such as carbon dioxide, ammonia, and hydrogen sulfide, especially in the later stage of brooding. These harmful gases can make the air foul and affect the health status of the peacock chicks. According to environmental hygiene requirements, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the brooding room must not exceed 0.15%, and the concentration of ammonia must not exceed 0.002%. Therefore, doors and windows should be opened frequently to strengthen air circulation so that the room stays fresh, and people should not feel stuffy when entering the room. To keep ventilation from affecting heat preservation, ventilation and air exchange can be carried out at noon on clear days, and a buffer room can also be set up at the ventilation opening so that the cold air outside cannot directly enter the brooding room, thereby reducing the speed of temperature drop.

6. Scientific feeding

Drinkers and feed troughs should be arranged reasonably. Ensure that every young chick can drink water and eat feed, and chicks that have not eaten feed should be given separate supplementary feeding. Peacock chicks at 5-7 days of age can begin to be fed artificially prepared complete feed, 4-5 times per day, and later gradually reduced to 3-4 times per day. When feeding, adhere to the principle of small amounts and frequent additions, and the amount fed should be just enough to be finished with no leftovers, to prevent feed waste and spoilage of residual feed.