Advice needed: How to introduce Guinea with chickens.

[Kimmy]

We've raised two guineas with 25 chicks we ordered from the hatchery. Our existing flock of chickens is approx 50 including two roosters. The 25 chicks were old enough to introduce to the existing flock of chickens this was done approx 1 1/2 weeks ago. The 2 guineas are in our barn, as we haven't introduced to them to our chicken flock.
So my question is: When is the best time of the day to introduce the guineas: Night when they're all roosting or day?

Thank you

 

[SilverPhoenix]

It's pretty touchy with guineas and chickens if they're not raised together. Oftentimes the guineas will bully the chickens they don't know, sometimes even to the death. If your guineas are still young, though, as it sounds like they are, I'd just put them in with the chickens but watch carefully for a while to make sure neither side gets bullied. Remove the guineas and try again later if the chickens gang up on them or vice-versa. Be aware that when you add new chickens to your flock and the guineas have become accustomed to their flock, the guineas may bully unfamiliar birds. I lost one hen to my guineas and eventually grew tired of them harassing my chickens, so now they have their own pen separate from the chickens. That said, the guineas do serve as excellent alarms if anything unfamiliar is in the yard.

Good luck, I hope that helps. If you have any issues just sticking them in the pen with your chickens, you can always put the guineas in a cage inside the coop to get used to the chickens and vice-versa.

 

[phasian]

I have 14 guineas that reside in a pen with 46 chickens, 20 ducks, 2 geese, and 2 rabbits. They first were introduced to this large run by housing them in a huge parrot cage within the run for a week. I then released them and find that they get along just fine with the other inhabitants. They are deferential to everybody in the pen except they do exert dominance over the rabbits, but not aggressively so. Everything I have read about them being the "bad asses" of the barn yard, has not proven true with my flock of guineas. They are docile, curious, and exhibit a form of intelligence that is in a different form from my other birds. I wouldn't go so far to say they are stupid (as they are not responsible for global warming or overpopulating their planet), but their short term memory seems to be very short term.

 

[birdbrain5]

i got 3 young, but about full grown chickens to start, then got 3 guinea keets and 2 chicks and raised them together until they were big enough to put in with my other 3 chickens. they all did well at first and i thought it was untrue about guineas being bullies, but now ive noticed them bullying my hens to the point they arent laying and dont want to come out of coop. i didnt want to do it, but i ended up seperating the guineas now. i wish i had success like some people have, good luck tho, maybe with all those chickens and only two guineas they will stay in line!

 

[cgmccary]

I let my hens hatch guineas in August (so 6 months old). I housed the newly hatched keets in a cage with their mother hens inside the coop. They were slipping through the gauge wire on the cage and one keet got killed by one of the outside hens in the first couple of days. After that, they were too fast for the chickens to catch. When they were about two weeks old, I let them out. I have 14 Guineas (best I can tell, 4 or 5 males and 9 or 10 females). All has went well since; peace in the coop. The coop is spacious and they free range during the day and go in on their own at night & I lock them up when I get home.

I am aware that folks say the Guineas get to be aggressive in the Spring or when about 8-9 months old -- so I am waiting to see if all hell breaks loose. If they become psycho & hurt or kill a hen, they will end up in the freezer.

phasian: how old are your 14 Guineas?

 

[cracking up]

I just put 10 juvenile guineas in with six roosters and two hens. The chickens are a couple of months older than the guineas. They all seem to get along real well. I think the most important thing is to give them plenty of room and at least three feed dishes spread out in the coop. If they don't get along they have their own place to eat. I have two big waterers, they don't seem to fight over water as much as food.

 

[D'Angelo N Va.]

I found out that my guinea roosters were the agressive ones. The hens were docile towards the chickens, but those males had the chickens including the roosters coming and going every second..and they would pick one for the day and almost kill it. And the guineas were younger..I finally had to seperate them all together. My last guinea died about 2 yrs. ago and although I love their eggs..I am hesitant about getting more. Maybe if I free ranged mine like my grandmother did, I wouldn't have a problem. Because during the day the door is opened to the hen house and they were all over the yard until night time.

 

[cracking up]

I free range the adults and was thinking about letting the little ones out during the day. I had forgotten about them being the perfect size for hawks until someone mentioned it. I'm going to wait until they are a little bigger.