Guinea Fowl Basics?

[teriz1091]

My husband works at a feed store & was given 4 leftover guinea keets after today’s chick sale.

I know ZERO about them. I had to google what they look like.

We have 5 grown hens, 4 pullets, & 2 young ducks, & live in the country a mile from the closest neighbor.

Advice for a first-timer?

 

[R2elk]

My husband works at a feed store & was given 4 leftover guinea keets after today’s chick sale.

I know ZERO about them. I had to google what they look like.

We have 5 grown hens, 4 pullets, & 2 young ducks, & live in the country a mile from the closest neighbor.

Advice for a first-timer? Side note - I did not want them! I didn’t want more mouths to feed & house! :/

Read Raising Guinea Fowl 101 and pay particular attention to posts made by @PeepsCA

If you really don't want them,when they mature, let them sleep in the trees or hide nest and it won't take too long for the predators to get them.

 

[teriz1091]

Update on the keets - the heat lamp bulb went out last night. My husband found them this morning & brought them in, all almost comatose and cold. We didn’t have another bulb, so had to make due with a regular bulb in the heat lamp today while we were at work.
When I got home, one was already dead. One was laying in the water dish, soaked, but somehow still alive, though freezing cold. The others were still cold & not moving. I wrapped them in a rag & sat down with them with a blow dryer on low to slowly warm them & dry the one.
I got them warmed up, & they began to move a little more. I had my husband dissolve some sugar in a syringe with water to give them a few drops to help perk them up. Another one died after I’d gotten them warmed up, before we could get it the sugar water.
Surprisingly, the one that had been in the water perked up the best. We made a mash of their food, & put a small amount in their beaks, & they were both able to eat it. We put them on a heating pad while we went to get a new heat lamp bulb.
The one chick is still perky, & I think will be fine. It’s chirping & moving all over the crate. The other one doesn’t look good, it’s back to just laying flat out with it’s eyes closed.

If the 3rd one dies, what do we do about the last lone chick? I assume they don’t do well kept alone. Do I need to start searching for another keet to keep with it? If the 3rd one does make it, they’ll be fine as just a pair, right?

 

[R2elk]

Update on the keets - the heat lamp bulb went out last night. My husband found them this morning & brought them in, all almost comatose and cold. We didn’t have another bulb, so had to make due with a regular bulb in the heat lamp today while we were at work.
When I got home, one was already dead. One was laying in the water dish, soaked, but somehow still alive, though freezing cold. The others were still cold & not moving. I wrapped them in a rag & sat down with them with a blow dryer on low to slowly warm them & dry the one.
I got them warmed up, & they began to move a little more. I had my husband dissolve some sugar in a syringe with water to give them a few drops to help perk them up. Another one died after I’d gotten them warmed up, before we could get it the sugar water.
Surprisingly, the one that had been in the water perked up the best. We made a mash of their food, & put a small amount in their beaks, & they were both able to eat it. We put them on a heating pad while we went to get a new heat lamp bulb.
The one chick is still perky, & I think will be fine. It’s chirping & moving all over the crate. The other one doesn’t look good, it’s back to just laying flat out with it’s eyes closed.

If the 3rd one dies, what do we do about the last lone chick? I assume they don’t do well kept alone. Do I need to start searching for another keet to keep with it? If the 3rd one does make it, they’ll be fine as just a pair, right?

Guinea fowl are flock birds. I never recommend having fewer than 10 guineas.

 

[teriz1091]

Guinea fowl are flock birds. I never recommend having fewer than 10 guineas.

10?? I really wasn’t wanting to add any more birds to our existing ones, especially these strange ones I had hardly ever heard of. But now we have one chick (the 3rd one died), & it obviously won’t do well alone. He’s going to call the hatchery about getting a couple more.

 

[R2elk]

10?? I really wasn’t wanting to add any more birds to our existing ones, especially these strange ones I had hardly ever heard of. But now we have one chick (the 3rd one died), & it obviously won’t do well alone. He’s going to call the hatchery about getting a couple more.

Just put some chicks in with it.