Billy Boy

The spring and summer months have always offered me joy. Spring for me means new life. On the farm new life is abundant with the birth of a variety of baby animals. A joy that I simple will never tire. While at the Farm Show last year my husband and I purchased a blue eyed white male peacock to keep our white female hen company. We house them in the barn for the winter and let them into the back treed area to reside with the chickens in the summer months. David cut paths with the tractor but left the field with a natural landscape. I piled branches in one area for the wild rabbits to reside. A place that I refer to as the Rabbitatury. Yes, a word that I made up but is fitting for their mini wilderness area. I love walking out back and seeing the wild rabbits, peacocks. llamas, alpacas, and Jacob Sheep all meandering through the high blades of foliage, pine and cedar trees. A tranquil oasis to have a quiet time of reflection and thank God for what he has provided for our enjoyment. One evening, we noticed that we had not seen our blue eyed white male peacock but could hear him calling in the distance. Living a stones throw from the Conewago Creek, I was certain that Billy Boy was enticed by his adventurous spirit. The next morning, we received a call from a neighbor that Billy had made his way to their chicken coop and was happily residing with their chickens and ducks. We picked him up by wrapping him in a couple of towels for the ride home. We checked on how to adequately trim his flight feathers in hopes that this would keep him home bound. This still enabled him to fly short distances and get into a tree for his safe keeping at night. Several days passed and Billy and Iola remained together. Just about the time, I thought we had the situation conquered, the phone rang to let us know that Billy was walking down our road and up the dirt road that leads to our neighbors coop. No longer able to take flight, he decided to take the long hike on foot. These summer days we find that Billy Boy comes home for short visits and sleeps in the tree in the front field and then for no apparent reason, he takes his hike down the road and up the hill to visit his other favorite flock

Peacocks
Because of their gorgeous appearance, the peacock has long been famous outside of its native countries of Southern Asia and Malaysia. They have been kept for centuries by people first in China and then in Europe and America. The Phoenicians brought the peacock to Egypt more than three thousand years ago. Historical records indicate that Solomon kept several peacock species, among other pheasants, with the India Blue being his favorite peacock. Peafowl were extensively raised by the Romans for the table as well as for ornamental purposes, and medieval Europe carried on this practice as well. It is only after the XVI Century, when turkeys were imported from Mexico, that the peacock was discarded as a table bird for the more fleshy American birds.

Peahens are excellent mothers, but peachicks can be reared just as well in a brooder. They are among the easiest birds to raise. One thing to be careful about is to give them good shelters in the autumn and winter following their birth, as they are not fully grown before eight or ten months.

Peafowl can be quite sociable and often display their feathers right in front of you in the springtime. The male peacock displays his gorgeous tail feathers in the spring and also utters an awakening call which is loud yet quite delight to hear!

Peacock feathers are popularly used in unique crafts and decorations.