Do you feed your guineas

[chickfilletNOT]

I feed my guineas chicken feed and give them scratch for treats. But they are real pigs about eating all that expensive food, and I see all kinds of berries and stuff laying around the yard that I wish they would eat (because it's free and why not?) instead. I know I should feed them during the winter time but if they are free ranging in the summer, do you feed your guineas?

 

[Wickedchicken6]

Guineas require higher protein. <(please disregard this incorrect info, it pertains more to guinea keets)

I haven't noticed mine being pigs. I thought they were rather conservative compared to the hens.

My guineas have access to poultry starter (21%) 24/7, it's what I feed the flock. They get fed a substantial amount of eggs and they get to free range all day. I also supplement with millet and wheat with cleanings. They also get food tossed from the house.

If I separate the guineas from the chickens, I'll be buying game bird/turkey crumbles instead. It will match their nutritional needs better.

 

[chickfilletNOT]

What I mean by pigs, is that eating from the feeder is the easy and lazy way of eating. We live on four acres of mulberry and cherry and other fruit trees, clover abounds, etc. And so I think they fill up on the feed I'm buying and then go off and dig holes all over the yard :/ instead of foraging for food. I was thinking that in the summer they really shouldn't need supplemental feed from me. Hoping.

 

[Wickedchicken6]

Mine tend to burst from the coop like they've been locked in it for a thousand years...lol. They usually visit the seed wheat pile that was left over. Then they chase a few chickens...pair up and they go about covering the farm. If I'm fortunate I see the females come back to the coop to lay eggs. I've seen them eat some starter then, but they're not really pigs about it. As a rule I generally see them at the feeder before they roost.

How many guineas do you have? You could have more guineas than I do. That would make a substantial difference. And whether you have more females

I'm counting 12 and should have about 20 by this fall.

 

[R2elk]

Adult guineas will do fine on a good quality feed that is at least 16% protein. I have 20% protein lay pellets and free choice oyster shell available to mine all the time. My guineas do eat much less purchased food when they are foraging in the summer but they have the feed available to them at all times.

It is the keets that really need the high protein feed and not the adults.

Guineas develop their tastes at an early age. If have have something that you want them to eat, introduce that food to them when they are keets. If you have something that you don't want them to eat, do not introduce that food to them when they are keets.

 

[chickfilletNOT]

Mine tend to burst from the coop like they've been locked in it for a thousand years...lol. They usually visit the seed wheat pile that was left over. Then they chase a few chickens...pair up and they go about covering the farm. If I'm fortunate I see the females come back to the coop to lay eggs. I've seen them eat some starter then, but they're not really pigs about it. As a rule I generally see them at the feeder before they roost.

How many guineas do you have? You could have more guineas than I do. That would make a substantial difference. And whether you have more females

I'm counting 12 and should have about 20 by this fall.

I currently have seven guineas. Four males and three females. So lots of fighting, and I thought if they have to forage more, maybe they won't have as much time for fighting. :/ and hole digging.

 

[R2elk]

I currently have seven guineas. Four males and three females. So lots of fighting, and I thought if they have to forage more, maybe they won't have as much time for fighting. :/ and hole digging.

During breeding/laying season, guineas are more interested in fighting/breeding than in food.

 

[Wickedchicken6]

Adult guineas will do fine on a good quality feed that is at least 16% protein. I have 20% protein lay pellets and free choice oyster shell available to mine all the time. My guineas do eat much less purchased food when they are foraging in the summer but they have the feed available to them at all times.

It is the keets that really need the high protein feed and not the adults.

Guineas develop their tastes at an early age. If have have something that you want them to eat, introduce that food to them when they are keets. If you have something that you don't want them to eat, do not introduce that food to them when they are keets.

Ok....I thought it was also the adults that needed higher protein as well...with their foraging patterns and such. But I see you are very correct.
Thank you for adding the above.
I'm going to correct my post to reflect that so it doesn't confuse anyone in the future.

 

[Wickedchicken6]

I currently have seven guineas. Four males and three females. So lots of fighting, and I thought if they have to forage more, maybe they won't have as much time for fighting. :/ and hole digging.

During breeding/laying season, guineas are more interested in fighting/breeding than in food.

My first 4 guineas were 3 males and 1 female. There was a lot of craziness fighting and running around, much like R2elk mentioned. I let the female pick her mate and sold the other males. I've been fortunate to raise more female keets than males. The ones I purchased last year also turned out to be female...so I've had a higher female to male ratio. Perhaps that has made the difference here.

The only scuffle I see now is the older males chasing the youngest male...but we just noticed he goes taunting them...lol. I plan on selling 3-4 of the males and hatching new genetics for breeding. I've been very fortunate with the guineas I have...they've been quite easy going to work with. I also raise them all from keets...I find that makes a huge difference with the chickens so possibly does with the keets.

 

[LittleDinosaur]

I've been having problems with my guineas being pigs, too. I have 4, 1 hen and 3 males. I wasn't sure if it was because I bought them as adults for a quick fix to protect my chickens (I haven't lost one since), but they do bully my hens away from the feeder bowl, eat all the feed and then laze around the chicken yard instead of free ranging with my chickens. My feeding bill has gone up significantly since I got these 4! I have 5 keets in the brooder now, any way to raise them to not be pigs but rather be foragers?