Guinea eggs

[R2elk]

We have 9 guineas and I have no idea if they are male or female. They are about 4 months old and we just started letting them out tto free range for a few hours during the day. I also wondered what age they will start laying as I do hope I have a few girls in the bunch. They are so funny to watch and move together like a little army but they are quite chatty too.

Your hens, if any, should start laying next spring.

 

[Nancy Antonelli]

I have a flock of 16 guinea and 3 RIR hens. My hens have hatched all the guineas that I have..one guinea tried but trampled the couple hatched chicks.
My sons love the guinea eggs; they are smaller, use 2 to 1 for recipes. They will lay for 100 days. I have 9 girls so I get 9 a day once they start, which in IL they have already.
They are a joy to have, and my hens raised them so they know home. I let them out after work and they will cover a 5 acre spread and always come home when the solar lights start going on.

 

[SMiller1015]

I want to know the same thing. I got a call from the gal down the road she is getting a dozen guinea eggs a day and if I want them free I can have them. soooo do they taste like chicken eggs and look like chicken eggs??

I can't tell the difference between chicken and Guinea eggs. Help me too please

 

[mckee farms]

They do not look like guinea eggs, but taste relatively the same...


Guineas will roost in one spot repeatedly... So keep them penned up for a few months (at least 3). They should return to sleep... HOWEVER, a hen will lay eggs in the sneakiest location she can find, and if she finds somewhere outside the pen, she will lay else where.


That being said, when they go broody, they will stay where the nest is.... And that is where you don't know the location... So... Bad news. That is sometimes the case with all birds though. Lol. /img/smilies/big_smile.png

I just got some full grown guineas. I was wondering if I let them out will they stay at home. I live in country. Thanks

 

[Nancy Antonelli]

the guinea eggs are half the size of a hen egg and are bigger on one side and more pointed on the other.
Everyone one of my neighbors, myself and my sons love them. this picture pretty much shows the difference (but my hen eggs are brown too. the guinea eggs are tough to crack open, when you boil them they have a thicker membrane, and they are more creamy boiled than a hen egg.

 

[tnmyer]

They are good to eat. They have a harder shell than a chicken egg, and there is more yolk than whites, but they are very good to eat. They are light brown speckled and a little smaller then a mature chickens egg.

 

[MeepBeep]

[quote name="mckee farms" url="/t/580393/guinea-eggs/30#post_17058254"I just got some full grown guineas. I was wondering if I let them out will they stay at home. I live in country. Thanks[/quote]

If they are adults you will need to keep them confined to a coop or run for weeks or months before you let them out if you really want a chance for them to return to the coop... Without them being trained that their new coop is their new home they will almost certainly wander off many times even established coop raised guineas will prefer to find a tree or other high place to roost for the night over the coop...

There are of course exceptions to the rule, but IMO best to confine them for a period of time before letting them range...

Another option is to only let half out at a time, they generally never leave eat others sight so if some are caged or cooped the ranging ones won't go far, but they will probably complain none stop that that are separated by a fence...

 

[mdc05]

Just curious - and I know this is an older thread - but do they store like chicken eggs on the counter? Or do you have to treat them differently? We have 2 guineas in with our chickens and they have just started laying. Totally surprised us because they are only a couple of (maybe 3) months old! But I haven't seen anything about if they are ok to also store on the counter if they remain unwashed.

 

[MeepBeep]

Yes, you can store them on the counter like chicken eggs...

 

[HappyWifeFarm]

Just curious - and I know this is an older thread - but do they store like chicken eggs on the counter? Or do you have to treat them differently? We have 2 guineas in with our chickens and they have just started laying. Totally surprised us because they are only a couple of (maybe 3) months old! But I haven't seen anything about if they are ok to also store on the counter if they remain unwashed.

I have a similar question...

I just discovered a nest with 38 eggs in it. I have 6 guineas that free range and I know they just started laying a few weeks ago (yes, early I know). This is my first year with guineas. How long do the eggs keep? I know chickens eggs have a 45-day recommended expiration date...is it the same for guinea eggs? If I wash them, do they need refrigerated? Or does that bullet-proof shell keep out bacteria after they've been washed? Just trying to figure out how to store these eggs and when I need to use them up. They could've been out in the nest for a couple of weeks now.

Thanks!