Guinea hens egg laying

[Zullo]

First, I must say I am not sure which are males/females. I read that hens will start laying in spring. My guineas free range my property during the day and are locked up at night. ( I am trying to prolong their lives.) My question has to do with egg laying: do the hens create a nest and stay on it? The guineas are 10 months old. Do I need to hunt out the eggs or the bird? Any feedback you can give me is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

[Brahmachicken240]

Mine started laying a week ago, first two days they were laying all over the place, now they have a nest in the rushes at the bottom of one of my feilds.
You’ll see them hanging around their nesting area quite a bit during the day.
Follow the Guineas to see where they hang out.
Youll see the guinea cocks standing by their hens, sitting on the hidden nest, of course that is if they are laying.

 

[R2elk]

First, I must say I am not sure which are males/females. I read that hens will start laying in spring. My guineas free range my property during the day and are locked up at night. ( I am trying to prolong their lives.) My question has to do with egg laying: do the hens create a nest and stay on it? The guineas are 10 months old. Do I need to hunt out the eggs or the bird? Any feedback you can give me is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Guineas are seasonal layers. Depending on your location, they may start laying soon or it may take a while yet.

My guineas will not start laying until late April. First time layers tend to lay a little sooner.

The hens create a nest unless you have provided a nest site that they find acceptable. First time layers tend to drop their eggs wherever they happen to be at the time that they feel the urge. It can take a few weeks before they begin to realize what is going on. They tend to like communal nests and can lay huge clutches before going broody.

Depending on how well hidden the nest is, it can sometimes be easier to find the hen on the nest and sometimes it can be easier to find the eggs instead. If the laying hen is at the stage that she is singing the egg song, it can be very helpful in narrowing down where to look for the nest.

Good luck.

 

[Zullo]

Guineas are seasonal layers. Depending on your location, they may start laying soon or it may take a while yet.

My guineas will not start laying until late April. First time layers tend to lay a little sooner.

The hens create a nest unless you have provided a nest site that they find acceptable. First time layers tend to drop their eggs wherever they happen to be at the time that they feel the urge. It can take a few weeks before they begin to realize what is going on. They tend to like communal nests and can lay huge clutches before going broody.

Depending on how well hidden the nest is, it can sometimes be easier to find the hen on the nest and sometimes it can be easier to find the eggs instead. If the laying hen is at the stage that she is singing the egg song, it can be very helpful in narrowing down where to look for the nest.

Good luck.

The egg song? They seem to be “peeping” more than screaming. Is that it? I do have to say though, the five I have left are always together. I haven’t seen a change in that behavior.

 

[R2elk]

The egg song? They seem to be “peeping” more than screaming. Is that it? I do have to say though, the five I have left are always together. I haven’t seen a change in that behavior.

Nope, I don't know how to explain it but when you hear it, you will know. It only happens when a hen is on a nest.

As far as the peeping goes, the only time that my guineas are silent is when they are sleeping. The rest of the time they are always "talking". The normal well known sounds are the "buckwheat" and the alarm. The rest of the time it is a constant soft melodic chatter.