Guinea gender identification

[2ndTink]

Ours didn't object to being left in their run yesterday, I was expecting them to be upset but they just cruised around and ate, dust bathed, and chattered just like they do when they are free ranging. The chickens on the other hand scold me so bad if I leave them in.

ColtHandorf, good luck with the guineas and building a new area for them. It seems they split their time between being completely aggravating and being so funny to watch.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

It's absolutely ridiculous. lol The barn and the three breeding pens there are probably 200 ft. away from the house, fenced back yard, and the original chicken pen where the guineas, geese, ducks, and some young chickens are growing out. But that doesn't stop him. He makes a beeline for the barn and if one of the gates is open to let the Orps out for a bit he drives them all back into the pen, into the barn, and up on the concrete slab. By then the guinea hens have wandered off so he'll come running out looking for them. The original male was an absolute terror. When they original quad (one male and three females) were in the barn with the BBS Orpingtons and one random Lavender he completely scalped the Lavender hen. I thought he'd killed her. I moved them into the pen with the geese that night and they've gotten along fabulously. I don't have any issues with them. We all know how chicken math is, so as I had to shuffle some birds around as some cockerels came of age an extra Silver-laced Orpington rooster and some generic layers got moved over into the pen with the guineas and geese. They were fine for weeks and then the male started picking on the Orpington rooster. I only kept him for sentimental reasons, and when I was out there and the rooster streaked by with a guinea holding onto him like it was a rodeo I could feel the earth shift when I accessed some unknown mental ability and with my bare hands managed to snatch him up in one try. I'm pretty sure telekinesis was involved. Haha I kind of blacked out for a second I was so annoyed. Needless to say he went to live with a flock of guineas at a friend's. Fast forward to now and out of all the keets I kept back I ended up with Lavender male and three Lavender hens, two Pearls, and one Royal Purple. I added two very young Whites to the mix and I think they are a pair. Now the young male has taken to tormenting all the chickens too. So to spare him from the crazy human snatching him up and threatening to drown him in the geese pools, I'm going to build them their own area.

Wow! Sounds like some real problems with your colorful guinea flock! Was your mean male brooder with chickens?

 

[ColtHandorf]

Wow! Sounds like some real problems with your colorful guinea flock! Was your mean male brooder with chickens?

Nope. The original male came from an all-guinea flock. The keets I kept back were raised with a dozen or so keets and turkey poults of various ages. I've never really had an issue in the past mixing guineas with the other birds but I had like 60 guineas at the time, so maybe they just didn't care about the other birds because they had so much guinea stuff going on.

 

[R2elk]

Nope. The original male came from an all-guinea flock. The keets I kept back were raised with a dozen or so keets and turkey poults of various ages. I've never really had an issue in the past mixing guineas with the other birds but I had like 60 guineas at the time, so maybe they just didn't care about the other birds because they had so much guinea stuff going on.

It is important to have enough guineas for their flock dynamics to work properly.

 

[ColtHandorf]

It is important to have enough guineas for their flock dynamics to work properly.

Agreed. One of my roommates hated the guineas so I tried to keep a smaller amount. It's not like I want 60 again, but I have nine currently. Seven adults (Pearl, Royal Purple, and Lavender) and two juveniles (White).

Thankfully a friend who lives very close (like ten minute drive) has agreed to baby sit them for the winter to allow me time to build them their own little kingdom.