Considering Guineas

[Shadrach]

Can't argue with that. The guineas I had yelled at each other pretty much all day. I find it endearing though. Maybe cause I have a very loud stereo system, and very good headphones lol.

Ours free ranged but unfortunatley not far enough.
I have to be honest and state that they were a lot of trouble for not a lot of joy and the Goshawks seemed to like them.
A further problem was while it is true they foraged well they are direct competition for the same type of forage as the chickens. If you free range chickens this might be a consideration.
They got moved on and are on my never try that again list.

 

[R2elk]

Ours free ranged but unfortunatley not far enough.
I have to be honest and state that they were a lot of trouble for not a lot of joy and the Goshawks seemed to like them.
A further problem was while it is true they foraged well they are direct competition for the same type of forage as the chickens. If you free range chickens this might be a consideration.
They got moved on and are on my never try that again list.

Guineas aren't for everyone. Sorry your experience with them was not satisfying.

 

[Shadrach]

Guineas aren't for everyone. Sorry your experience with them was not satisfying.

No need to be sorry, it wasn't your fault.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Larger than a Sharp-shinned Hawk and about crow-sized, but males can be much smaller.

crow-sized

Regional Differences​

Cooper’s Hawks from western North America are substantially smaller (weighing around one-fifth less) than birds in the East.

MEASUREMENTS​

• Male
  • Length: 14.6-15.3 in (37-39 cm)
  • Weight: 7.8-14.5 oz (220-410 g)
  • Wingspan: 24.4-35.4 in (62-90 cm)
• Female
  • Length: 16.5-17.7 in (42-45 cm)
  • Weight: 11.6-24.0 oz (330-680 g)
  • Wingspan: 29.5-35.4 in (75-90 cm)

Look for Cooper’s Hawks to fly with a flap-flap-glide pattern typical of accipiters. Even when crossing large open areas they rarely flap continuously. Another attack maneuver is to fly fast and low to the ground, then up and over an obstruction to surprise prey on the other side.
They will eat chickens and guinea, if they have the leisure to do so in place. But they're smaller than guinea,won't be flying off w/full grown one, & "leisurely" isn't a premium for these hawks, bc they're always watching out for attacks from bigger hawks. They have learned that humans conveniently put outfood for local birds so will be seen at feeders. As always, everything is a threat to young guinea.

Our Coopers are so sneaky! I rarely see them yet when I do, they seem to appear from out of nowhere. Once it was when I let the chickens out to free range. I stayed out with them to “keep them safe”. One hen had ranged pretty far (100 ft?) from the coop and flock to a lawn area. As I gazed her way, I suddenly noticed a blur of motion near her, which abruptly pulled up and left almost too quickly for me to track. Neither she nor I reacted until the hawk had already called off its attack. I guess the hen looked bigger close up, or maybe that’s when the hawk noticed me standing nearby. Last year we had lost two Guinea hens before I realized we had a predator and not hens on a nest. We then proceeded to cut back lots of brush as I thought it was a bobcat (oops!). That’s when I realized that the very nervous guineas were hiding in the brush a lot. The
Guineas saw me outside and came out of the brush to be near me. That’s when a sudden streak of motion came out of nowhere to dive near my head. A Guinea cock near to me flushed in a panic and the hawk left as quickly as it had come. The only good thing to come out of that is the experience seemed to spook the hawk enough that it stopped preying on the guineas. Red tails are bad too, but nowhere near as sneaky as those Coopers.

 

[Sydney65]

Our Coopers are so sneaky! I rarely see them yet when I do, they seem to appear from out of nowhere. Once it was when I let the chickens out to free range. I stayed out with them to “keep them safe”. One hen had ranged pretty far (100 ft?) from the coop and flock to a lawn area. As I gazed her way, I suddenly noticed a blur of motion near her, which abruptly pulled up and left almost too quickly for me to track. Neither she nor I reacted until the hawk had already called off its attack. I guess the hen looked bigger close up, or maybe that’s when the hawk noticed me standing nearby. Last year we had lost two Guinea hens before I realized we had a predator and not hens on a nest. We then proceeded to cut back lots of brush as I thought it was a bobcat (oops!). That’s when I realized that the very nervous guineas were hiding in the brush a lot. The
Guineas saw me outside and came out of the brush to be near me. That’s when a sudden streak of motion came out of nowhere to dive near my head. A Guinea cock near to me flushed in a panic and the hawk left as quickly as it had come. The only good thing to come out of that is the experience seemed to spook the hawk enough that it stopped preying on the guineas. Red tails are bad too, but nowhere near as sneaky as those Coopers.

Yes, that's their attack method, or one of them. Stay low, swoop, then pull up. At best, though, a full grown guinea & full grown female cooper might weigh the same, but she's not getting off the ground w/a guinea, she'd be eating in place.
We took out the small juniper one liked to hide in, so none are hanging out here that we know of. Every once in awhile I'll see a sparrow or wren doing the frantic dive w/a cooper on her tail, but not often. Too many big hawks and vultures patroling the fields.

 

[Aunt Angus]

Yeah, I don't think it'll work for a couple of reasons. I really mourn when I lose an animal. Also. I was hoping to keep them in with the goats, who have about a half an acre within the portable fence. While the fence would keep them contained and protected from 4-legged predators, it wouldn't do anything for the hawks. Any brush/bushes they'd be able to use for hiding would be devoured by the goats, leaving the guineas exposed.

 

[african chickens]

I dont think it would be easy to keep them safe from those kinds of predators and they aren't very smart when it comes to fences so that could also be a problem although i do recommend them for the ticks and guineas combined with goats keeps you safe from both ticks and poisonous plants I would recommend locking them in a predator-proof coop at night and watching them during the day hopefully the predators wont figure a way around that hawks don't usually grab guineas