6 of my guineas are just gone, one pair stayed.

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mel51

mel51

In the Brooder
6 Years
Apr 11, 2013
20
0
22
I have hand raised these guineas along side my 15 Chic's. I coop them up every night with no problem until 1 week ago.They are 17 weeks old. I was running a little late to coop them up, but it was not dark yet. They were all on top of the outside run that leads into the yard. It was a hot night in Kentucky and I could not get them in even with treats. So I left them on top of the coop. The next morning they were all gone.All eight of them, I thought they were just out making their rounds, but that evening when it was time to coop them up again, I only saw three. I went to get the treats to get them to come in, and now there was only two. The two are a pair a male and a female. It has been a week now and the pair is still with us but no sign of them, There was no signs of a predator, no signs of a struggle. I miss them and just have a hard time making since of the loss. I have live traps in my barn at all times, my coop is a stall in my barn. Where did they go, Not even a far off buckwheat call.
 
I am so sorry you can't find them. I have four and think only one is a female as I have only heard one give that "come back" call. They were hatched on June 12 and have been out and free ranging for about 3 weeks now along with our 9 chickens and two silkies. They take off during the day and fly back in around four in the afternoon. However, yesterday my husband saw then roosting during the day back in the over hang of the roof of the coop. Is there any chance they have gone to roost up high somewhere in your barn or do you have trees they might be hiding out in? I have heard of them going broodie and staying out with their eggs instead of coming back into the coop. Maybe check any tall grass or weeds? I sure hope you will be able to find them. Good luck to you.
 
Thanks for the reply. I have 11 acers I touch side with a nursery,a dairy farm and two land owners. They did free range and when I would ring my cow bell they would answer. They were loud, you could hear then from a long way off. I have not heard them sice they left or were taken or killed. No answer to the cow bell. Would all six of the go broody at one time? They are so very loud if they were just off going broody would I not hear them?
 
It's possible they all went broody, but not very likely. You could talk to your neighbors and see if they've seen (or heard) anything. What a bummer. I'm so sorry!
 
The Nursery behind me I am afraid to talk to them.They were firing off guns the day they went missing. I did not here them make any noise though, so i do not think they were hunting them I hope. I do know they are often hunted for their dark meat. The nursery is very large and I often here them hunting. I have seen wild turky fly over our fence and go into the nursery, also bobwhites.
 
I would ask them - very nicely - if they have seen any of your guineas. They won't shoot you (I hope) and they might surprise you with an answer. I would tell them you've heard them shooting and that you want to have guineas free-range, but that you hope they'll not include the guineas in their hunting. Tell them you'll give them free eggs, and that guineas can keep the tick population very low! That usually works with neighbors. I'm curious though, why are you afraid of them? I have experience with uncooperative neighbors where guineas are concerned, but they won't shoot them. What kind of "nursery" is it?
 
Well, I posted earlier that I have four guineas. Make that three. I was missing one a week or so ago. Noticed it when I let the chickens out in the morning. Then when I was standing at the kitchen sink I caught something out of the corner of my eye. It was my guinea being eaten by one of the biggest hawks I have ever seen. AND it was eating it on top of one of our dog houses!! I chased it off and gave the remains a burial by cremation. If I had a gun handy I would have killed that hawk - even if it is against the law! But I really don't think this is what has happened to yours. Especially since so many went missing all at once. Have you talked to the people at the nursery? If you don't want to go alone, grab a friend to go with you. And good luck.
 
The worst experience of my life raising birds was four years back when I had hand raised 15 guinea keats to come when I whistled. It had been two months and I would lead them around the acreage with a walking stick and they would coop back up with I called. One day they veered into the hay field which was filled with grasshoppers. They just vanished into the tall alfalfa. All my searching and whistling and calling and hunting couldn't bring them back from the feast of grasshoppers. They were gone. For days and days I tried to find them and called for them to come home. I heard an occasional distant cheeeCHEET. But never enough to find them.

I feel your pain. Don't give up. Since then I have raised dozens of guineas and never had a complete loss again.
 
Good luck! I hope your guineas have just come off to play int the trees and that they'll come home to you soon.
 

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