Questions on coop sizes, bedding, and DE-- both peas and guineas!

[SilverPenny]

I've been browsing around the boards and learning so much (you guys are pretty much the Wikipedia of poultry) but I have a couple questions that I wasn't sure about. I've been through the learning center and reading various pages, but am still not too sure, so if these are stupid questions, I'm sorry!

1. Is diatomaceous earth needed with peafowl or guineas?

2. What do you all use for bedding in the run? What about the coop?
--I've been looking to do the deep litter method since the entire area is going to be so large (a quarter acre ish or more). The run is going to have a dirt floor. Unsure on the coop. Any input?

3. What is the minimum size for the indoor area for peas and guineas?
--I'm planning on just having one inside area for the both and don't want to make too small.

4. Do I need separate feeding areas for the peas and the guineas?

5. I know the peachicks grow bigger faster than the keets, but have read that keets are potentially aggressive. Is this something I should worry about when housing them all together?

Thank you in advance for your help! I truly appreciate it.

 

[new 2 pfowl]

Hello! And

, in particular, the Corner Devoted to Peas!

It looks like you are in Kansas? Which might make @KsKingBee an excellent person to answer some of your questions. Housing requirements can vary by location...

 

[KsKingBee]

I've been browsing around the boards and learning so much (you guys are pretty much the Wikipedia of poultry) but I have a couple questions that I wasn't sure about. I've been through the learning center and reading various pages, but am still not too sure, so if these are stupid questions, I'm sorry!

1. Is diatomaceous earth needed with peafowl or guineas?

2. What do you all use for bedding in the run? What about the coop?
--I've been looking to do the deep litter method since the entire area is going to be so large (a quarter acre ish or more). The run is going to have a dirt floor. Unsure on the coop. Any input?

3. What is the minimum size for the indoor area for peas and guineas?
--I'm planning on just having one inside area for the both and don't want to make too small.

4. Do I need separate feeding areas for the peas and the guineas?

5. I know the peachicks grow bigger faster than the keets, but have read that keets are potentially aggressive. Is this something I should worry about when housing them all together?

Thank you in advance for your help! I truly appreciate it.

My opinion is that DE is highly over rated, I do like to provide a dusting area with peat moss, sand, and wood ash.
No bedding in the runs, half of mine are sand, the others are dirt and native grass. Our pea brooder has pine shavings, the pea coops are three walled buildings with sand floor.
100 square foot of area per bird total between coop and run area.
All of our guineas are free range, (also known as owl bait).
We keep new hatched keets and peachicks together for a very short time, but then separate them by a week or two. I only have them together for the keets to teach the peas to eat.

 

[casportpony]

@SilverPenny , welcome to BYC!

-Kathy

 

[Birdrain92]

I plant grass in the outside pen. There are few spots for them to dust bath and each small pebbles to help with digestion. The grass also helps control the manure in the run. If you water the grass enough it will absorb the manure for nutrients and keep it green and healthy. That's the way my Indian Blue pen is. The inside is dirt flooring as I've mentioned before.

 

[zazouse]

I've been browsing around the boards and learning so much (you guys are pretty much the Wikipedia of poultry) but I have a couple questions that I wasn't sure about. I've been through the learning center and reading various pages, but am still not too sure, so if these are stupid questions, I'm sorry!

1. Is diatomaceous earth needed with peafowl or guineas?

2. What do you all use for bedding in the run? What about the coop?
--I've been looking to do the deep litter method since the entire area is going to be so large (a quarter acre ish or more). The run is going to have a dirt floor. Unsure on the coop. Any input?

3. What is the minimum size for the indoor area for peas and guineas?
--I'm planning on just having one inside area for the both and don't want to make too small.

4. Do I need separate feeding areas for the peas and the guineas?

5. I know the peachicks grow bigger faster than the keets, but have read that keets are potentially aggressive. Is this something I should worry about when housing them all together?

Thank you in advance for your help! I truly appreciate it.

 

[SilverPenny]

Thanks for the replies! Your answers have led to these questions... how often are you cleaning poop with dirt floors? How often do you replace the pine shavings?

 

[Birdrain92]

Thanks for the replies! Your answers have led to these questions... how often are you cleaning poop with dirt floors? How often do you replace the pine shavings?

I clean my coops about every 3 months. That's due to the fact that I have such few birds to such the size of pens I have. More area per bird means less time between cleanings.

 

[Trefoil]

I also don't use DE. I have one pen where I kept a pair of peas and 6 guineas in last year and the guineas de-tailed my peacock. URG....

 

[connerhills]

Them stripped noisy birds are areal pain in ??? with peafowl, I used to have them running loose with my males and they would run under the train and get on it and ride. You can put one in a 100 sq. mile fence and it would only run up and down the side of the fence. I did feed most of them to the owls. D E is only good on soft body things like worms, it is ground up shells and is real sharp and cuts them up as a harder body bug does not even notice them. connerhills