Are my Guineas being weird or is this normal?

[GuineaMama]

Does anyone else's Guineas buck-wheat and get LOUD after dark for no apparent reason?

I have 9 guineas, and all but 1 are less than 6 months old. I'm not sure how old "Blue" (the older one) is as he came with the house and former owner didn't have a clue either.

My guineas are inside a pen at night and are well protected from predators, so I know there isn't anything IN there to get them stirred up, but several times during the night all the girls will start buck-wheating. This will go on for anywhere from 5 - 30 min then they will quieten down. Some nights they do this several times a night, other nights its only once or twice. They don't get down from their roost during this, the girls just get loud for a while. Is this normal?

 

[GuineaLady93]

Well, the reason that mine would be doing that is they think they see something. If their is something in the woods or something goes through the yard, like a dog, cat, or anything else that doesn't belong their, they will go crazy. That is why people say they are good guard dogs. That is the only reason I can think of why they would be doing that.

 

[Chic-n-farmer]

Sounds like normal behavior... in that weird guinea way.

My guineas can see us in the pool from the roof of one of the chicken houses. They like to holler at us while we swim.

I love them and wouldn't be without them. There have been times that hearing the guineas was the only way I knew something was wrong.

 

[GuineaMama]

I've yet to see anything in the yard, though that's what I thought at first too. We don't have any dogs, cats stay indoors, and the pen is quite a ways from the woods, but there COULD still be something out there that the guineas are seeing. We have quite a few deer around so that could be what they are seeing. Most of the time either my husband or I will shine a flashlight out to the pen to make sure there isn't anything snooping around trying to get in, though we've yet to see anything.

 

[PeepsCA]

Normal, but weird at the same time, lol.

I have noticed over the years that my Hens will buckwheat like this too for whatever reason, kind of all in unison, sometimes for a couple hours straight, random weird hours of the night and it usually seems to be in the springtime. I can't tell you how many times I've gone out, checked each pen and shined the light up at my free rangers roosting up in their tree, but I've never seen anything that could be the cause.

Guineas have zero night vision, so they can't see anything when it's dark, but they may be able to hear, sense or feel something prowling around... rodents eating their food possibly, or an owl screeching nearby can upset them. Seems like they'd realize they are just making themselves predator beacons if it is because of a predator tho . There's some nights this whole valley is alive with howling Coyotes calling back and forth to each other or a bunch of pups yipping, right outside my fenceline, but the birds are quiet

 

[GuineaMama]

Thanks all! They are indeed crazy, strange birds but I sure enjoy them. Except when they all get L O U D at the same time!

It could be they are hearing things out in our woods. We have our share of coyotes, deer, possums, coons, etc etc so that may be it.

 

[coleridgedane]

My guineas are ridiculous. They go on & on when I'm out there feeding & never make a peep when strangers arrive or something else happens that SHOULD rattle them. I have 3 flocks; different ages, varying numbers. Totally about 30, they all free range. I'm just happy that they eat bugs. Period.

 

[blessedchick]

Sounds like they might be imagining something if it isn't really a critter in their territory. Mine were twittering and trilling around my front yard for about 10 minutes last week before they looked up and noticed that I was talking to a friend (large, hairy, foreign, fowl-eater). They erupted into shrieks of alarm, walking towards us the whole time until they were about 3 feet away - still shrieking at the top of their lungs. We finally went inside the house since we couldn't hear ourselves over their cries. All was quiet till 2 of them jumped up on the back of my glider on the front patio, looked in the kitchen window to see the large hairy foreign fowl eater at the KITCHEN TABLE! Panic ensued once again...until we moved to the living room. Good thing that I love those goofy birds as madly as I do!

 

[terrilhb]

Mine do this alot too. I can not tell you how many times I go out in the night just to check and make sure they are all ok. None of my chickens are making a noise and the goats are all quiet. Just those crazy birds. I so love them. When they are out and walking around I swear they know when I am on the phone because they will come right up next to me and start screaming. Jealous little turds they are.

But I would not have them any other way.