This article was previously published on GuelphToday.
A peacock has been roaming around near a turkey farm in Belwood for the last week and was captured on Sunday.
The male peacock is in the care of the Guelph Humane Society and the owner is yet to be found. The peacock was spotted about a week ago by a woman who has a turkey farm off Sideroad 20.
On Jan. 14 she called the humane society again and told them she contained the peacock by giving it turkey food while it was hiding underneath a porch.
“They're not great fliers, but they do fly better than a chicken does. So they are a bit tricky to catch,” said Victoria Welsh, manager of animal services at the Guelph Humane Society.
Animal service officers were able to capture him with a net, she said.
“He's a great healthy boy. He is beautiful in colour. His body condition looks great,” said Welsh. “It looks like he might have just escaped his pen or got away from wherever he was being housed.”
The peacock had no signs of frostbite, she said. They are not native to the area and not fully acclimatized to the weather so it is important they have access to indoor and outdoor space, Welsh said.
“Because the problem is, is all the water sources are freezing. These guys don't know how to actively hunt for those sources. So it's also important to get them to an area where they can access water,” she said.
She thinks the peacock kept frequenting the turkey farm because he could access food and water there.
The owner has yet to come forward. “Obviously, our goal is to always reunite pets with owners. That's always our number one priority,” said Welsh.
The humane society reached out to other agencies close to the area to see if they have had any lost animal reports.
The rule is to have lost animals be placed on a hold for five days and if they haven’t been claimed by then the animal is put up for adoption, she said.
“They are domestic animals. So a lot of hobby firms actually do have peacocks there. They make great pets or beautiful animals. They eat all the ticks and bugs around the property. So it would have to be a rural farming property,” Welsh said.
For adoption there would be a screening process.
The peacock is in the farm animal room at the Guelph Humane Society. Although they haven’t had a peacock in quite some time, they have had pigs, pheasants and other birds, said Welsh.
