Advice needed to free range 3 new Guinea flocks on about 200 acres successfully

[SchadeysAcres]

I really want to set these flocks up for success! Suggestions needed! Should I raise keets and set them out? Would poults be a better idea? How adaptable are Guineas? Should I source them locally?

We are planning on building at 8,200 elevation on 70 acres in Albany County, Wyoming in the next year. Neighbor has 120 acres and another has 35 acres. Only one of the neighbors is currently on the acreage full time. All three of us would like to establish Guinea flocks for tick management. There are great wooded draws, with creeks and a pond. Plenty of places for Guineas to hide and forage. I've seen success doing this but want to be better informed!

Do's and Don'ts would be greatly appreciated!

 

[R2elk]

I really want to set these flocks up for success! Suggestions needed! Should I raise keets and set them out? Would poults be a better idea? How adaptable are Guineas? Should I source them locally?

We are planning on building at 8,200 elevation on 70 acres in Albany County, Wyoming in the next year. Neighbor has 120 acres and another has 35 acres. Only one of the neighbors is currently on the acreage full time. All three of us would like to establish Guinea flocks for tick management. There are great wooded draws, with creeks and a pond. Plenty of places for Guineas to hide and forage. I've seen success doing this but want to be better informed!

Do's and Don'ts would be greatly appreciated!

Read the thread Raising Guinea Fowl 101 and pay particular attention to posts made by @PeepsCA

At 8200' elevation, you will not be able to establish self sustaining flocks that are wholly free range. You will need to provide them with both a food and water source throughout the winter. Those that are not in a secure coop at night will become victims of predators, especially broody hens in the summertime.

My guineas have no problem with the snow, now. When they first encountered snow was a whole different story. I had to build landing strips using some hay that I had. Until there was a dark landing area on the ground, they refused to come down out of the trees.

They have to be provided with liquid water throughout the winter.

 

[SchadeysAcres]

Read the thread Raising Guinea Fowl 101 and pay particular attention to posts made by @PeepsCA

At 8200' elevation, you will not be able to establish self sustaining flocks that are wholly free range. You will need to provide them with both a food and water source throughout the winter. Those that are not in a secure coop at night will become victims of predators, especially broody hens in the summertime.

My guineas have no problem with the snow, now. When they first encountered snow was a whole different story. I had to build landing strips using some hay that I had. Until there was a dark landing area on the ground, they refused to come down out of the trees.

They have to be provided with liquid water throughout the winter.

First thing I read when I arrived to this forum (Guinea Fowl 101)!!! That post was very helpful.

Landing strips in the snow!

Thanks for the elevation/winter information. That was my concern. Based on your wisdom, until we are on-site full-time or can rely on the neighbor for a (major) helpful hand, Guineas would not be setup for success.

There is a homestead I follow who has a very successful expanding free-range flock that thrives without assistance - but, if memory serves, they are only at 3,500 elevation. Life at 8,200 is very different.

Maybe we get involved with a new flock for the full-time neighbors and expand once we are there full-time.

Thank you so much for sharing your wisdom!

 

[R2elk]

First thing I read when I arrived to this forum (Guinea Fowl 101)!!! That post was very helpful.

Landing strips in the snow!

Thanks for the elevation/winter information. That was my concern. Based on your wisdom, until we are on-site full-time or can rely on the neighbor for a (major) helpful hand, Guineas would not be setup for success.

There is a homestead I follow who has a very successful expanding free-range flock that thrives without assistance - but, if memory serves, they are only at 3,500 elevation. Life at 8,200 is very different.

Maybe we get involved with a new flock for the full-time neighbors and expand once we are there full-time.

Thank you so much for sharing your wisdom!

There is a world of difference between life at 3500' and 8200'. The homestead that you follow may have entirely different predator conditions than you will have in Albany County, Wyoming. I have some similar predator problems but of course I don't have the bears and cougars to deal with. You will have owls to deal with. If you think you can successfully deal with guineas without having a secure coop for them at night, I lost my entire first flock to Great Horned Owls. Now my guineas are kept in a secure coop at night.

 

[SchadeysAcres]

There is a world of difference between life at 3500' and 8200'. The homestead that you follow may have entirely different predator conditions than you will have in Albany County, Wyoming. I have some similar predator problems but of course I don't have the bears and cougars to deal with. You will have owls to deal with. If you think you can successfully deal with guineas without having a secure coop for them at night, I lost my entire first flock to Great Horned Owls. Now my guineas are kept in a secure coop at night.

Neighbors have confirmed bobcat, mountain lion, and coyotes on the ranch - so we definitely have challenges. Have heard the owls and see many hawks. I had hoped the wooded draws would provide decent cover/roosting/protection. Not thinking that broody hens would be grounded and owls would be flying.
I'm so sorry you lost your entire first flock! I really want to try to prevent that from happening. I'm sure we can come up with a plan to keep Guineas safer and supported up here but it will take a lot more hands on than I had conjured up in my head. Thank you for sharing that first-hand experience! I would not have thought about the owls or grounded hens.

 

[R2elk]

Neighbors have confirmed bobcat, mountain lion, and coyotes on the ranch - so we definitely have challenges. Have heard the owls and see many hawks. I had hoped the wooded draws would provide decent cover/roosting/protection. Not thinking that broody hens would be grounded and owls would be flying.
I'm so sorry you lost your entire first flock! I really want to try to prevent that from happening. I'm sure we can come up with a plan to keep Guineas safer and supported up here but it will take a lot more hands on than I had conjured up in my head. Thank you for sharing that first-hand experience! I would not have thought about the owls or grounded hens.

One thing to remember is that guineas are not particularly fond of wooded areas for anything other than roosting.

The other thing is that if the main concern is tick control, you want them patrolling the areas nearby and not necessarily the whole ranch.

 

[SchadeysAcres]

One thing to remember is that guineas are not particularly fond of wooded areas for anything other than roosting.

The other thing is that if the main concern is tick control, you want them patrolling the areas nearby and not necessarily the whole ranch.

Ahhh, unaware of this preference. Luckily, life up here provides plenty of non-wooded areas!

I did read somewhere that a flock would cover about 5 acres.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Ahhh, unaware of this preference. Luckily, life up here provides plenty of non-wooded areas!

I did read somewhere that a flock would cover about 5 acres.

I think that our flock would love to cover 200 acres... It’s a chore keeping them on 10 acres. They do a pretty good job with ticks on both our prairie and oak forest- they are more comfortable in shrub than I thought they would be. However, I have them locked up right now, first due to leaving our property, then more recently due to a coyote trying to prey on our ducks. Our tick population ratcheted up pretty quickly once they were locked up. Ours are high maintenance, but that’s partly because I’m attached to them and always trying to make things better for them. They are popular here in Oklahoma due to our tick populations, but most people release them on their land (pasture, cedar forest, oak forest) and then ignore them. They generally are preyed on over the year, then they buy another batch and release again the next summer.