Guinea cocks at war

[GoodGuinea]

I've had guinea fowl for a few years now, but I don't intend to get more when the ones I currently have are gone. In the meantime, I still have 5 guineas: 2 cocks and 3 hens. I know it's not good to have such a small flock, and the males, Tips and Snapper, are doing very badly together. Tips is bullying Snapper, who is losing feathers and getting thin. I can keep them separated for a time, but not permanently. Tips also picks on the smallest of the hens, although she's better at avoiding him.

If I get rid of one of the males, which one should it be? The dominant bully? Or should I get rid of the one in poor health?

Or is there another option?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Get rid of the bully. Bullying another male is one thing but he shouldn't bully the hens

 

[My2butterflies]

Are you sure he’s bullying the hen and not trying to mate?

 

[GoodGuinea]

Are you sure he’s bullying the hen and not trying to mate?

I'm pretty sure. He rushes at her and drives her away when she gets close, stands between her and food, and pushes her off roosts. He also stands guard at the coop door at night and won't let her in. He doesn't treat the other two hens that way.

 

[BennieAnTheJets]

Hm. I am not sure about your little flock - every situation is different - and Guineas can be very strong individuals with their own personality, but I am thinking several things:

1. How long has this been going on? I am asking because I have seen bullying (very extreme) to go on for a while (days) and then suddenly stop. My interpretation was that the bully was establishing her/his position (long after **I** thought s/he should stop now since the order is so obvious to me and one bird is clearly clobbered) and once **The Bird** was satisfied that the position was firm they got along again as if nothing had happened, rubbing shoulders and no problem. You would think you were crazy to have seen these two going at it just 24 hours ago.

2. I have had good luck, at times, locking the bully up for a while (24 hours or so - you may have to do it for 2 days if the bullying is well established) and letting everyone else have a break and continue flock dynamics without the bully. On return the bully either resumed (20% of the time maybe) or everything was reset and there was no more trouble (80% of the time) - it can be like they forget or need to re-integrate and are less sure of themselves.

3. I have often helped a situation by making changes to the environment (adding feeders, waterers, hiding places) and routines (putting treats in the back corner when calling them in, to get the bully away from the door, for example). It does not change the pecking order but it takes pressure off the lower ranking members and the bully since there is less conflict for everyone.

4. Sometimes more free range time can "fix" things for us because the birds engage in chase behavior and can get it out of their system without contact - they establish who is stronger and who is #2 by running instead of feather plucking, even though they will make some contact on occasion. Being confined together can make it harder for them to resolve issues.

5. Something you probably don't want to do that may also help is to add more birds rather than take birds away, but that can be a double edged sword anyway...

 

[My2butterflies]

I'm pretty sure. He rushes at her and drives her away when she gets close, stands between her and food, and pushes her off roosts. He also stands guard at the coop door at night and won't let her in. He doesn't treat the other two hens that way.

Maybe adding some more roosts and food dishes may help? Even better if they have a barrier between them so there are no lines of sight.
Adding more food dishes would be the most important so the hen can get the food she needs. It will be hard for the male to keep her away from multiple dishes.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Our guinea flock last year had 8 hens and 1 cock. There were four high ranking hens that did and went where they wanted, with the support of the cock. The other 4 hens were still in the flock, but were “fringe” members. The behavior you describe reminds me of how the lowest ranking fringe hen was treated. She was in the flock but had to stay far away, about 20-30 ft. Trying to get them inside to roost at night was tough. None of the fringe girls could enter the coop until the high ranking birds had roosted. The lowest ranking hen had to be forced in over and over at dark, when the other birds couldn’t see her. Nothing I did helped this situation until I added more birds, and the flock dynamic stabilized. Only one of these fringe girls stayed with this cock, still as an outsider. The other fringe hens happily paired off with the new cocks. Now this original subflock just ignores those former fringe hens or forages sociably with them. Even the situation with the last fringe hen is better; she chooses to stay with them and they tolerate her better.

 

[LaFleche]

Despite more than 6.4 acres of free ranging grounds the situation with my guineas became so bad that one of the males broke his neck.

 

[GoodGuinea]

Despite more than 6.4 acres of free ranging grounds the situation with my guineas became so bad that one of the males broke his neck.

Something similar happened with us a couple years ago, involving a different pair of males. One of them eventually killed the other. I want to avoid that recurring if at all possible.

 

[GoodGuinea]

1. How long has this been going on?

The bullying ramped up in early spring, and I thought it would subside once one of the males had established dominance. However, even now that the ranking has been clear for months, the winner seems to continue picking on the loser.

2. I have had good luck, at times, locking the bully up for a while (24 hours or so - you may have to do it for 2 days if the bullying is well established) and letting everyone else have a break and continue flock dynamics without the bully.

We put him into a separate area last weekend. He was frantic, but the rest of the flock calmed right down. However, he has turned into Houdini and twice broken out to rejoin them during the night. That's never happened before, and I'm still trying to figure out how he's doing it so I can close the loophole!

3. I have often helped a situation by making changes to the environment.

About a month ago, we doubled the size of their run, added more roosts and a couple hiding spots. It does help somewhat, especially for the low-ranking hen to stay out of the way. The low-ranking cock doesn't seem smart enough to avoid trouble. Adding more food dishes was a good suggestion that I hadn't thought of before. We did it, and I think it's been helpful.

4. Sometimes more free range time can "fix" things for us.

We try to let them out to range as often as we can. However, we live in an area with lots of predators, so someone always has to babysit them, which doesn't work well with our schedules. One day last spring my daughter was with them, and she went inside to use the bathroom. During the 5-6 minutes she was gone, we lost a bird. And it's hard to convince them to go inside before evening, even with treats. We've had other flocks that were much more cooperative and herd-able, but this little group is completely resistant and insanely frustrating. Once they're out, we're usually stuck outside with them for the rest of the day.

5. Something you probably don't want to do that may also help is to add more birds rather than take birds away, but that can be a double edged sword anyway...

This would probably help more than anything, but we're not going to continue with the guineas right now, and that would just prolong it. We are planning to transition to chickens. I've never had a mixed flock before, so I don't know if adding chickens would help in the same way adding guineas would. Thoughts?