Confused Guinea Hens...advice please

[alogue5173]

I got 8 Guineas in July. They were already a few months old but don't know the exact age. Last week I started finding Guinea eggs in random places. First they were in the coop on the floor then where ever they happened to be whenever the urge to lay hit them. Now I get to go on a guinea egg hunt every afternoon to find the eggs. Only 2-3 are laying. I read on here they don't usually start laying til spring and it is obviously going into fall here in GA. I cracked an egg just to see bout fertility because I've never actually seen them mate and I also read on here that fertility rates were poor to non-existent when they first start laying. Lo and behold, the egg was fertile. So, now my questions are...1) Should I incubate or was it just a fluke that the egg I cracked was fertile and 2) Is there anyway to get them to lay in a consistant location? Even when they are penned, they will just lay on the ground in the pen. Thanks for any advice/help. This is my first time raising guineas and I love them, but they are definitely strange little creatures!

 

[alogue5173]

Anyone?

 

[HoneyDreameMom]

About the not laying eggs until the spring after they hatch...I think that must be a general statement. The keets we got in April are now laying eggs and two of them are sitting on a clutch of 30+ eggs. According to other posts, they can be somewhat stealthy maters. If the girls are going broody, there's a good chance that at least some of the eggs are fertile.

Lol - as far as having them lay somewhere consistently, that's a shoulder shrug.

Mine mostly lay in the nest they are currently sitting on. I've also found eggs by the swimming pool, by the goat fence, and one in the chicken run, but not a single one in a nesting box.

Guineas - gotta love 'em!

If you decide to hatch some of the eggs, be sure to post pics!

 

[nailladi]

Haha, I agree they are strange creatures. It will be cool soon so I would eat them other than starting out with little ones this late but that is me. Mine have slowed down to almost a stop so I know it will be cool soon. They are pretty smart.

The good news is you know they will produce a bunch in the spring!!

 

[PioneerPrincess]

About the not laying eggs until the spring after they hatch...I think that must be a general statement. The keets we got in April are now laying eggs and two of them are sitting on a clutch of 30+ eggs. According to other posts, they can be somewhat stealthy maters. If the girls are going broody, there's a good chance that at least some of the eggs are fertile.

Lol - as far as having them lay somewhere consistently, that's a shoulder shrug.

Mine mostly lay in the nest they are currently sitting on. I've also found eggs by the swimming pool, by the goat fence, and one in the chicken run, but not a single one in a nesting box.

Guineas - gotta love 'em!

If you decide to hatch some of the eggs, be sure to post pics!

Hmmm... yeah, that might be a general statement. The guinea hens we have now were hatched in the summer and started laying the next summer, which is when I always assumed was their laying season. Ours start laying in the summer and slow down / stop in the fall.

Definitely x2 on the laying somewhere consistently. Ummm...yeah, ours lay just wherever they feel like it- by the hose, in the middle of the yard, in the nest box, in the middle of the chicken pen, on the hill, under the goat barn, in the hay. The ONLY time ours lay consistently is when they have a nest that no person has seen or touched. Mm-hmm... THEN I find a dozen plus eggs in there! Of course, once I raid that nest, they're off to finding a new one or laying in random places. Silly little birds. : )