My thoughts on Guinea fowl

While I could post this on the section for Guineas, I'm putting it here for the education of you all.

If you're looking up the definition of "birdbrain" in the dictionary I'm sure it'll show a picture of a guinea fowl. I have 16 of them, 13 are snug, warm and dry in the chicken coop but the other 3 have insisted on roosting in the top of a tall tree for the last 3 days. Their reason: in order to get back in the coop they'll have to walk in the snow--there is about 5 inches on the ground.


Now, normally, I don't let the birds out this time of year but a couple ducked out when I was filling the waterers a couple of days ago so I opened the pop door. The guineas saw the snow on the ground and immediately flew into the trees and stayed there. 10 came back in that night--in a couple of cases with my herding them in--but the rest stayed out. The next night another 3 came in at dark but the last three held out during nights when the temperatures went to 20 below.


After 4 nights it seems all are in as I don't see any in the trees this am. Of course they could have been taken by a horned owl or frozen and fallen to the ground. I'll check today, but with 16 birds milling around in and out of the flock of chickens, it is tough to get an accurate count.

Guinea fowl have never been the barnyard class valedictorians.

Good luck with your fowl. That is such a rotten deal and I totally could see that happening on my farm.

I think they're all in but the only way I can be absolutely sure is wait until dark and count them on the roost--it is a 100-yd hike, through snow and single digit temps so nothing I really anxious to do. This afternoon I found one sitting on top of the woodpile. Normally they run or fly from me but he/she allowed me to pick him/her up and cradle it until I returned it to the coop. After 6 days I guess that was enough time to be out.

6 days feels like a good time to give up. Smart guineas after all!

I have 8 guineas and they will wander into the chicken house and tractors during the day but not all at once and they do not want to stay. I keep a barn door open in hopes every night that they will make the decision to at least roost on the beams in there but that is very rare. A couple weeks ago when it was in the single digits with the wind chill below zero, they all flew up into their favorite tree right out side the chicken house for the night. I expected to find guinea 'cicles the next morning. Nope! Last month when we had sleet and freezing rain, they were up there again. I can not make mine go in the barn, so I just have to wait every night to see what their decision is and 99% of the time they are in that tree. I have a Night Guard flashing into the sky so I don't worry about owls. Even though my GP barks at the owls calls every night, they don't get near the tree. And raccoons don't get near the chicken house, tractors or the trees. I have at least one flashing in each directions at their eye level.
Guineas are by nature from a warm climate - right?